Movies take a very long time to produce. Now that David Magee is working on the screenplay for The Silver Chair, we are hoping for a return in live-action. But is this the best solution for The Chronicles of Narnia?
I think that Narnia might be better suited to another format. One that isn’t contingent on the ages of the actors playing the roles. The rate at which the Narnia movies would need to be released in order to properly portray the actors at the correct ages would be much too fast unless they decided to put together teams to each handle the various books in the series.
Option #1: Animated.
If it’s animated, the characters can be played by just about anyone, and if the actors are children, they can fairly easily re-cast if they need to. And if they have all of the scripts locked early enough, they could have all of the dialog recorded years and years in advance of the animation being finished. Plus, with animation they aren’t limited with what they can accomplish.
Plus, it would be fairly unprecedented to have an animated film series go seven movies long. It would be an expensive gambit, but it could pay off.
Imagine a Narnia movie that looked similar to this:
Option #2: Live Action Reboot – Marvel Style
Here’s how I would handle a live-action reboot if I had an unlimited budget and an incredible line-up of writers and directors. I would take a page out of the Marvel Studios playbook, and operate the Narnia movie project as if it were “Narnia Studios.” There would be two movies released each year, and doing them chronologically would lend itself fairly well to the ages of the children. There would be some problems with it, though, as some of the cast would be filming multiple Narnia movies in the same year. That said, if filming is handled by a handful of directors, it could work out similar to a television series, as far as scheduling.
I would start by assigning a different set of directors and writers to each Narnia book. Each book has a distinct feel to it, with its’ own set pieces and circumstances for the stories being told. Planning would begin all together, with the entire seven to eight movie saga being planned out from beginning to end.
Year 1: The Magician’s Nephew and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Yes, we’d be going in chronological order, rather than the superior publication order. This will help with availability of the cast. At least in the beginning. The children don’t repeat from movie to movie, just the adults, who are either voices or can be available for multiple film shoots.
Year 2: The Horse and His Boy and Prince Caspian
This is another year where the children don’t repeat. However, there would be a small amount for the children from LWW and Caspian to do in Horse and His Boy. Prince Caspian would likely begin filming soon after Wardrobe wraps its’ shoot.
Year 3: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader and The Silver Chair
Dawn Treader would have to start filming either concurrently with Caspian or soon thereafter. Silver Chair could also begin as Dawn Treader wraps. Having the different directors and creative teams producing the films is a definite must.
Year 4: The Last Battle – Part 1 and The Last Battle – Part 2 (lol)
Why is this in two parts? Well… it seems that every major film franchise is separating the last book into two parts these days. It’s not out of the question. Would I do this? I don’t know, it’s debatable and would come down to the creative team and the direction. I think it could (and should) all be in one movie, but that’s just me.
Production on this seven to eight part series would begin a few years before the first films are released, and probably wrap during year 3. Something like this has never really been done before, outside of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it’s working wonders there.
Option #3: Continue the series as is.
Keep going and try to salvage the series going forward. It might lead to live action versions of books that have never made it to screen in any format.
Option #4: Back to the small screen.
The BBC created multiple mini-series of the Chronicles of Narnia back in the 1980s. I think they’re pretty boring and sometimes scary, but a lot of people really like them. After the first Narnia movie came out in 2005, a friend of mine said he wished that it looked the same, but had the script for the BBC version instead. I agreed, but with some editing to make it move a little bit quicker.
Doing Narnia as an epic multi-season television event would allow it to breathe. Plus, with the success of other fantasy books on the small screen, it’s not entirely out of the question.
What do you think? How would you like to see Narnia in the future? Do any of my proposed ideas interest you? Why or why not?
Option #3: Continue the series as is.
I would love to see the whole thing rebooted and done start to finish–I don’t care if it is animated or live action or a mini series as long as it is well done. That said, after PC and VDT flopping, I really do not see that happening. I would make The Horse and His boy as a stand alone film. The story lends itself film far better than the first few books and would make a good movie regardless of whether it was connected to any other Narnia movies or not. If it proved to be successful then you could do a full scale reboot of the series and it could still fit into the Narnia Cinematic Universe without much trouble.
Option #3: Continue the series as is.
I think just go on with it as it was started.
I’ve been a fan of Narnia since i saw lww when I was 10, and I’ve read all the books and watched all the movies since then. I’ve dreamed up every scene and how I hope it will look. I love movies, I’m a critic, I’ve seen most all blockbusters, and I love the art of storytelling as well as making money from that storytelling! I’ve thought up new ways to make the stories different for film adaptation while also not changing anything important from the books. I don’t like to brag but I want you to know I’m not just another internet user who wants everything their way and nothing else. Now that I’ve said that here’s my opinion, I sincerely hope you read this! Fantasy is falling down right now in the movie industry. I hate to admit it but superheroes and scifi are taking over. So how do you bring people back to fantasy like with lotr? You make it ACCURATE for the book fans, and you make it EPIC for the movie fans. Don’t change so much about characters and story, play with the atmosphere and timing of events.. prince Caspian did it right with removing the flashback, but wrong with the characters personalities. Just give us Prince Caspian style movies only do not change the characters personalities and fans will pay you anything you want. Yes make it live action, it has appeal to both the young and old as do the books, and no don’t rush the film’s like marvel and they all end up the same. Should you reboot? I hate to say yes but… I don’t see the series now continuing to make money. One idea I liked in this was filling at the same time with multiple crews. However, DO NOT DO MULTIPLE DIRECTORS. Do what peter jackson did with lotr, only do it in two fazes! Multiple directors makes a very awkward tension between the stories that fans cannot stand. They expect the same kind of atmosphere from sequels. Sorry, for spiel but you asked and I love Narnia so much! It’s very dear to my heart and I’ve dreamed of the day it could have a full seven movie successful run. Don’t need it up, try your best and keep the symbolism in it!!! You don’t it will instantly fail anyway, so you have to lol.
Thank you so much if you read that!
P.S. Get an up and coming composer like Thomas Bergersen or Ivan Torrent to do the soundtrack. Their music is better then Hans Zimmer could ever hope to make and I’m sure they are much cheaper 😉
I agree that the writers or director (or both) made a mess of some of the characters in PC (especially Peter), though Peter Dinklage was superb as Trumpkin.
Yes, keep going with the actors we’ve got, and let them stick closer to the books. Will Poulton may be a little old for Silver Chair but let’s live with it – Last Battle can cope with much more “adult” characters, and Horse and His Boy and Magician’s Nephew are out of the timeline enough that it won’t matter.
definitely option #3. Animated would ruin it for the lovers of the books. I was enthralled with th first 3 movies and always hoped someone would carry on in the same genre until all were on the big screen. With so much seeming chaos…I doubt I will live long enough to see the rest of the series on the big screen.
It’s an interesting mental exercise. I’m ok with option #3 (the most doable)
Suggestion? I have one: Narnia franchise going back to Disney!
Another: maybe it sounds crazy but imagine “The Magician’s Nephew” directed by Christopher Nolan… Dude, it would be amazing!
I love the idea of #2!! Unfortunately, I doubt it will ever happen. 🙁
I think this would only work if they revisited all of the stores, a seven film animated series would be epic. However, there’s no getting away from the magic of a live action performance and all this stuff about actors getting older and needing to be replaced isn’t strictly true. Camera angles and makeup keep actors looking younger all the time!
First off, If Disney had gone in Chronological order to begin with then I am positive that Disney would’ve continued the series but since they weren’t happy with how Prince Caspian turn out which didn’t make a lot of money to begin with so they dropped the project.
Option #1 #2 and #4, I don’t really like, first off Its too late for an animated series. The BBC versions were OK but not awesome and had cheap special effects, the acting was lousy and the list goes on. A TV series no, if Game of Thrones had been a movie split up into multiple parts I would’ve more then willingly watched it, there are very few TV series I actually like, and watch. I say continue as is with a company who is willing to work with Walden Media, I would love if Disney picked the series back up again. At this point I say ether Fox continues to make the series or they give the last few movies to a completely different company, like Warner Bros, Paramount, or Disney (possibly if they regain interest.) Thats my opinion.
I’d like option 3 if they can get back to following the books instead of making stupid stuff up, or option 4 as an alternative. Animated might also be ok, I really like the way the latest movies were made (aside from the weird story changes) but animated movies are really good nowadays too. For option 4 I agree with following the same script, the old bbc version was really good for following the books but of course didn’t have child actors which made it weird. I don’t remember thinking they were slow or boring but maybe that’s just me. Whichever option actually happens, I just want to see the whole series done instead of stopping like the bbc version but following the books’ script instead of messing with it. I’d prefer it in the original published order but I see how that might not work in live action. Anyway even if they make the movies in chronological order, once they’re all out on DVD we can watch them in published order, so that could be ok.
Definitely #3
In this day and age, why should Narnia films be animated? One of the best qualities of past Narnia films was the special effects. Hollywood can do anything and that includes hire perfect actors that fit the roles. Anyway, most of the remaining the books require new cast. (Jill Pole, Rillian, Puddleglum, Shasta, Aravis, Digory, Polly…) And they belong to a wide age range, not just children.
Bring the book to life, real life. Maybe, they can have a special feature of animated Narnia. A short film or something that puts together any missing details.
Following the publication order was a great idea. After the Silver Chair, they should make The Horse and His Boy (the most interesting book in my opinion), then Magician’s Nephew to show how everything started and then wrap it up with The Last Battle.
Agree totally.
I love Horse & His Boy too. Hope they don’t skip it! Was the best book after LWW.
As is, should continue in the same vein so as not to destroy the production continuity….been good so far.
Option #3. Do anything else, the magic will be ruined.
Option #3 please.
A live-action film just works. Making it animated would make it seem like its more for kids when Narnia is for everyone. And why would they bother starting from the beginning again? LWW was amazing. PC and VoDT weren’t that great to us die-hard Narnian fans but i know others who haven’t really read the books and they loved it. Time to move on to the other books!
I hope Silver Chair will be made soon and that it will do really well. I also really look forward to the Horse and His Boy. I mean, come on, Pevensie royalty in the Golden Age!! Woot woot! And you gotta love-hate the Calormenes and haha Shasta reminds me of when I was 17 working on my uncle’s farm before I moved to the city.
It must continue as it has been. It would be fine to put in new actors if necessary. It would work. I have had many conversations on the who and how and it is full consensus that it cannot go animated or be reloaded. Just do better with the next one. It will be ruin to do anything else.
I love option 2 because it saves and cuts time, but the only part I dislike about it is that it is being rushed at least it feels that way to me. In meaning I feel the films lose the value of time well spent on film at a time. I felt that way with Marvel’s recent films. It might be different with Narnia because the stories are already written out rather than trying to form a story from episodic comics, I could be wrong about the episodic part because I don’t read comics.
However, I prefer option 3 at the moment. I believe in the idea of finishing what you start no matter how poorly some parts may turn out. I honestly just want it to reach the end. Then wait another ten years to do another remake.
I don’t know if I want a restart or continue. I am afraid the series is going to die. Hollywood wants an epic action series, but the books are very character driven. The books have very brief battles and get back to the story. I enjoy movies with good acting and a good script. So far we have not seen either of these in the movies.
From the little pieces we have heard, Silver Chair does not look any better. The LOTGK does not need a name. She is a minor but important character. Less is more with her. We only need to see her at the bridge and her castle. The castle scene should be exactly like the book. Hollywood will unfortunately change that. Like I said the series is going to die.
The Japanese have done some great animation with great stories. Maybe they should take over. I do not want another Hollywood version of Narnia. Narnia books are nothing like Marvel comics.
Option 3: Continue the series as is [regardless of how many years it takes to produce the next film]. There is no need for this series to be ‘salvaged’ when The Voyage of the Dawn Treader was in fact the most beautiful of the films so far. If you are going to do a job on the world of Narnia you might as well do a good job.
I love and own the first three movies in the series so my choice is option 3.
While I’ve been happy w/ the live action movies produced so far & would prefer live action versions, I think Options 1 & 2 are the best given the current history of movie production of this series. The Harry Potter series worked out ok, but they stuck to the schedule & the actors didn’t outgrow their roles. Production seems to have taken twice as long (if not longer w/ all the changes) for this next installment and there’s still 3 more books in the series to be filmed not including the Silver Chair which is currently in production. Animation these days can be made to look & feel like live action if done properly, so it needn’t take away from what’s been done (much has already been done as CGI so why not do it for the rest…artists can render CGI versions of the Pevensies nearly indistinguishable from the live actors). While The Magician’s Nephew doesn’t need any of the current actors, real world time will play a factor in upcoming productions if they continue to take so long to produce.
In my view, the best option for the Narnia films to gain traction in creating a wide market (i.e. non-narnian) for the films would be two relatively quickly done live action films that are part of the series of the previous ones, reliant on the first title being ‘The Magician’s Nephew’ with Tilda Swinton, & the following film being ‘The Horse & his Boy’ – a wide favorite and naturally cinematic story.
It would also need someone like Andrew Adamson, or his level & type of talent, heavily bought into the remaining entire series processes to provide over view so the creative talents are able to reach full potentials in complementary style, along with keeping & guiding a depth of continuity in cinematic terms that can speak for itself, be caught on by a wide market segment & maintained for a franchise identity. The project with James Cameron, along with his previous Narnia experiences & output for better & occasionally worse, is the type of resource that could hold stuttering cinematic Narnia together and get it through to conclusion from my following of the series, it seems to me.
But it really depends on what the get it on the shelf desire is and what type of shelf, for the people doing it to what is the best way all the same.
Is this James Cameron that you mention the one involved with Avatar? I recently watched a half hour Great Nature documentary on the NHK World channel from Tokyo concerning the limestone karst territory in China. This landscape was the inspiration for Avatar and this documentary was actually better than the film (do not take my word for this keep your own eyes peeled for this show).
Hi.
yes it is; he & AA did a film together called ‘Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away’ absolutely spectacular in 3D & very fantastical in a dream scape non or minimal dialogue narrative type of way with a really nice finale in particular.
Option 3 please'” live-action’ pongan e las pilas vallan a warner hagan una verdadera saga, no animada, jamas, nos tubimos que bancar cada saga horrible como crepúsculo, echa en su esplendor, hollywood vive haciendo películas sin sentido, así que producir narnia va a ser un milagro para cada productora.. vallan a warner bros,
OPTION 3
Option 3 for me. I am a big fantasy fan and like all the Narnia live action movies despite their flaws. They should stick to it and try to do their best with the rest of the stories.
I’m a bit worried that the time in between the movies is getting too long now and that the audience may be losing interest, but on the other hand, maybe it’s good to give it a little break to breathe so that it appears fresh again after a few years. In that regard, The Silver Chair seems like a good entry, as it is more stand-alone and not too much connected to what came before (for example there shouldn’t be too much problems with the age of the actors).
In my opinion, rebooting it would be a big mistake! The studio(s) should have seen that the appeal to the masses is not as big as with Harry Potter & Co. There is no guarantee that they can realize all seven stories for the big screen the second time around. It would take years or even decades to come back to the point where we stand now. Who knows if they will ever have the chance to do the last three books then?
Furthermore, Narnia as a world is such a classic that it deserves its place on the big screen. I don’t think a TV-series with a (naturally) much smaller budget could do it justice in the long run. And I love animation, but to continue the current movie-series in that way would seem strange and like a big step back. Especially as it would certainly be CGI as everything else today, but I very much prefer classical animation.
No, I’m fired up to go to the cinema and finally see The Silver Chair in all its glory, and in no way inferior to the other three that came before it. I hope Fox is willing to continue it with the new producers, or maybe even a return to Disney is not completely out of question.
Still, if there is the potential somewhere in the production, it could be a good idea to film multiple Narnia movies back to back to keep the costs reasonable.
continue the series but better
I vote for #3. I would have a VERY hard time swallowing a Animated version the stories that are just too epic to put into a Animated form.
I could see a TV show version but I still want to see this movie series finish. I practically grew up with it and want it to finish strong.