Why Netflix Replaced Matthew Aldrich with Greta Gerwig | Talking Beasts
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Nothing has been heard from Matthew Aldrich since he was announced as the “creative architect” of Netflix’s Chronicles of Narnia adaptations in 2019… until now:
I had a very specific idea about what I wanted to do with the Narnia material. I had laid out for [Netflix] a strategy of film and series as a way to adapt the seven books in a way that was both sort of respectful, but also not precious, you know, and try to sort of update them in some fun ways. And ultimately that’s not the direction Netflix wanted to go.”
Matthew Aldrich, Script Apart podcast
Are we happy Netflix decided to go with Greta Gerwig instead? Listen to our discussion and then post a comment!
Special guest: Stuart from Into the Wardrobe:
Watch the post-show chatter.
Looking for all the news about Netflix’s Narnia? Here’s everything we know.
It’s hard to take too much away from such brief comments from Aldrich but considering that’s the only thing he’s ever said publicly about Narnia, I think it’s fair game. I feel much better having Greta Gerwig on board considering what she says about the books.
His comments are too vague to either pillage him or lament his departure. Technically, the Walden LWW film honors the source material while doing a few “fun things”. I’m not as much of a purist myself and was ok with *some* of the changes to PC, although I also hated Suspian. That said, I do cringe at the possibilities, and I’m glad Greta Gerwig reveres the books, whereas Aldrich was a bit more frustrated about working within their boundaries. It doesn’t sound like he grew up with them the way Greta did. So I’m happy about the switch up. But I really just want to see all books adapted. I’m not an old guy at all, but at the rate these adaptations are taking to come out (timewise), I’ll be a senior citizen by the time these all come out (assuming 3 years per adaptation, which isn’t even a guarantee). Let’s just do two to three hour films. A series I’m sure will delay these even longer! Look at Stranger Things. Ugh.
Hello! First-time commenter here. I haven’t read the Chronicles of Narnia books, but I’m an incredible fan of Greta Gerwig and have been eagerly awaiting updates on the film. Thinking back to the chyron in Lady Bird about the perception of hedonism in California, contrasted with the Sacramento Christmas, I’m intrigued by how Greta might approach the world of Narnia.
To gain insight into what her adaptation might look like, I’d highly recommend listening to The Hollywood Reporter’s Roundtable discussion she participated in during 2019/20 while promoting Little Women. Greta is such a distinctive creative force, and her work often bears the influence of her collaborator and husband, Noah Baumbach.
Interestingly, there are entire sequences in her films that seem to echo or draw inspiration from his work—for example, elements from Marriage Story appear in Barbie, and parts of Little Women seem to resonate in White Noise. I’d suggest watching Marriage Story, followed by Barbie, and then White Noise (a Netflix adaptation of the famous book) to better understand her approach to adaptation, storytelling, and the intentional secrecy surrounding her productions.
Whilst it does feel somewhat unfair for people to judge Matthew Aldrich’s Narnia plans based off two off-the-cuff comments, given that we’ve seen absolutely nothing of his actual work on the project (ditto Gerwig’s) there is something so striking about the contrast between the few statements they have both made which absolutely deserves to be noted.
It’s like night and day.
Wow, this is the first time we’ve gotten any real insight into what Aldrich’s vision for Narnia might have been! Respectful but not too precious, and updated in fun ways? I’m curious what that would have looked like, but honestly, I’m glad Netflix pivoted. Greta Gerwig seems like a better fit to capture both the atmosphere and beauty of the books. I just hope her vision keeps the heart of Narnia intact.
@Tinashe, I really don’t think Gerwig’s Narnia adaptation will take a similar approach to her Little Women. I would describe her Little Women as schematic (or I would if I were someone who generally used the word “schematic” 😉 ) and judging by her quote about Narnia, it sounds like that’s what she doesn’t want to do with it.
I’m not saying that to criticize her Little Women movie BTW or to lament that she’s not (according to my assumptions) doing the same thing with Narnia. Good movies can be schematic or non-schematic.
Let me say first that I’m impressed by how much this episode had to say. I didn’t really think there was anything to say about these quotes from Matthew Aldrich that the comments hadn’t already said but you guys came through!
As the above comments have expressed, I keep reminding myself to be fair to Aldrich. Being a writer, I can imagine how upsetting it would be to work on something for so long for nothing. And it’s possible his ideas for “updating” Narnia would have struck me as OK if I knew what they were. Maybe I’d even have liked them. And, as this episode points out, he said most of this in an audio interview. Aldrich might in conversation have accidentally made it sound like Netflix wanted their Narnia adaptation to be faithful to the books and he didn’t when their disagreements really could have been about other things. But man! Do I feel like gloating over this writer being replaced by one who is more appreciative of the books! Even if book fidelity wasn’t Netflix’s motive for the change, it seems like that’s what happened anyway.
People have the right to their opinions but it’s hard for me to sympathize with the critique that Narnia lacks cohesion or whatever. I feel like Glumpuddle and Stuart Hunt did a great job responding to it in this episode. The only thing I’d add is that the Narnian centaurs, for example, don’t feel like any old centaurs. They feel like specifically Narnian centaurs. And the same goes for the dwarfs, dryads, giants, etc. To me, they all feel like they belong to the same world, thanks to the consistent style C. S. Lewis employed throughout the series. I especially can’t sympathize with Aldrich finding this a problem for someone looking to adapt the books. If Narnia really does feel random and nonsensical, doesn’t that just make it easier to write?
And I really find myself rolling my eyes over the comment about it not feeling plausible. I mean, it’s a story about four kids finding a forest at the back of a wardrobe and learning of a prophecy that they’re going to be kings and queens. Plausibility was never the point!
I feel like I’m the guy in this community most likely to bash Michael Ward (well, except for Courtenay maybe) so I should probably stop. But I love what Glumpuddle said about how he didn’t think Ward’s thesis wasn’t actually likely to change the mind of someone like Michael Chabon. That’s exactly what I’ve been trying to say in my criticisms of Ward, but I’ve never been able to express it as clearly and neatly (and politely) as GP did. To be fair though, since Ward deals with academic types more than I do, maybe they really do change their entire opinions about Narnia when presented with his thesis in his experience. I find it hard to believe but I suppose it’s…possible.
I wonder if people who make movies are just less likely to appreciate the writing style for Narnia. Maybe there’s something specifically literary, as opposed to cinematic, about it. I don’t know what that could be though. I mean, they have plenty of memorable images. Aren’t images inherently cinematic? It does seem like Gerwig and maybe David Magee are the only ones we’ve found so far who enjoy the style and not just the stories.
P. S.
With the recent success of Wicked, I’ve decided to do a blog post (in January) about the movie Return to Oz. I’ve been rereading the Oz books by L. Frank Baum to prepare for it and let me say that if Michael Chabon thinks Narnia is “a jumbled land-of-make-believe gameboard” rather than “a world that really could be and is,” boy, he’d never be able to handle Oz!
Heads up: new rumors this week that Greta might quit Narnia. New (complicated) roadblocks to her premiering on big screen, instead being quarantined for 5+ years on streaming. Not in line with her Oscar ambitions. Look out: she might cut her losses, and bail.
https://www.worldofreel.com/blog/2024/12/8/greta-gerwig-exiting-narnia
@ Michael O’Brien
Thanks for the heads-up. Based on what he’s previously written, I would suggest that their source is merely wishful thinking. Narnia shoots this July!
@Col Kink , thanks for the insight, my particular comment was with regards to how during the production of Little women , equal amounts of research was done to the author and Alcott’s other work, also how Spielberg shared his work on Lincoln and inspiration was taken from the paintings of the post-Civil War American art in the art direction.
@Impending Doom.
Gerwig’s Narnia shoots this July? Is that news? I’ve been reading every article on Narniaweb and don’t recall that one! (Was it in the article about Shepparton Studios?) Or did you mean something else such as sarcasm about that article Michael linked to?
Edit: update: Oh, I just now noticed the article from 9 December about the filming date! Oh my! What news! 😉
Based on both Barbie and the upcoming Snow White adaptation that she co-wrote, I’m worried about what she will do with Narnia. Feminism is ingrained in everything of hers that I’ve seen, that I’m worried that the world of Narnia is going to be turned into the patriarchy.