Ben Barnes, who shot to fame as the title character in 2008’s The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, has said he is “thrilled” that Barbie filmmaker Greta Gerwig is set to reboot the film series for Netflix.
It was announced earlier this year that the first of Gerwig’s two Narnia films is set to be released for Imax on Thanksgiving Day 2026, before it moves to Netflix on Christmas Day 2026.
Gerwig’s film will be based on the sixth novel in C.S. Lewis’ beloved series, The Magician’s Nephew, which is a prequel that feature the creation of Narnia by Aslan the lion, one thousand years before the events that take place in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Daniel Craig and Carey Mulligan are set to star.
Speaking to Variety, Barnes said: “With classic literature, there’s no end to the ways they can be adapted as long as it’s being fresh and it’s speaking to a new generation.”
The actor, who reprised his breakout role in 2010 follow-up The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, went on: “Some fantasy really allows you to tell beautifully allegorical stories about hope and goodness and faith. I think that it’d be really interesting to see her take on that. I’m thrilled that [Narnia] is getting retold.”
Barnes can currently be seen in the MGM+ television series The Institute, based on the Stephen King novel of the same name.
Barnes added that he sees similarities between Prince Caspian and his The Institute character Tim Jamieson, saying: “When I was in my early twenties, I was involved in telling those stories for the next generation, so, to get back to playing a man with a real firm grasp on his moral compass, who is fighting to stand up for what’s right, it was something that I was really interested in.”
The Chronicles of Narnia, which were published by Lewis between 1950 to 1956, tell the stories of various children who are transported into the fictional and magical world of Narnia.
Three of the seven titles have previously been adapted for the big screen: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005), Prince Caspian (2008) and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010). It was also adapted as a BBC television series that first ran between 1988 and 1990.
Gerwig became attached to the new project in 2020, the same year her critically acclaimed Little Women adaptation was nominated for several Oscars. Before that, her solo directorial debut, Lady Bird (2017), also earned numerous Oscar nods.
She has since continued to blaze trails in the film industry. In 2023, her Barbie comedy, starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling, raked in over $1 billion at the box office, making her the highest-grossing female director of all time.
