The first two movies from Walden Media’s Narnia trilogy The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005) and Prince Caspian (2008) were released by Disney, but after Disney backed out of the franchise 20th Century Fox stepped in to release The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010). Today The Walt Disney Company has officially completed a $71 Billion USD acquisition of 21st Century Fox (source). This historic merger has significance to Narnia fans because it completes Disney’s ownership of all three films in the Walden Media Narnia trilogy. The new ownership also affects the upcoming J.R.R. Tolkien film to be released by Fox Searchlight.
It is unclear what plans Disney may have for the existing Narnia trilogy, but having all three movies owned by the same company presents many new opportunities. It is now much easier for Disney to release a blu-ray box set of the complete Walden Media Narnia series. This is something that has previously been available in a few select European sets in France and England. The ability to release The Voyage of the Dawn Treader on Blu-ray is only the beginning of the ways that Narnia fans may be able to enjoy the movie in the future.
Disney’s acquisition of 21st Century Fox expands the company’s global distribution reach including a controlling stake in Hulu and many other international distribution networks. This impacts the availability and distribution of all three Narnia movies making it easier for Narnia fans to watch the trilogy. When Amazon announced a record breaking deal to create a streaming series based around The Lord of the Rings for Amazon Prime my immediate reaction was that Narnia could be a perfect choice for Disney’s upcoming streaming platform. Later Netflix announced plans to create new Narnia content in the form of streaming movies and TV series. Disney’s expanded ownership of Narnia movies might not have any impact on the development of future Narnia content, but it does open up new doors of possibilities for the distribution of the complete Walden Media Narnia trilogy.
