'Chronicles Of Narnia' Franchise Will Get Rebooted With 'The Silver Chair'
It's been six years since the last movie in the Chronicles of Narnia franchise debuted in theaters, and as it was the worst performer at the box office and the worst film in the franchise, it seemed like the franchise was finally over. Despite news surfacing in 2011 that an adaptation of The Magician's Nephew was in the works at Walden Media, the franchise remained dormant.
Then just a couple years ago, a press release announced that The Silver Chair would be the next book getting the film treatment. There haven't been any new updates on that project either, but today brings news that the project is very much still in the works. However, it won't be bringing back anybody from the original franchise. This will be a Chronicles of Narnia reboot.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe introduced Skander Keynes, William Moseley, Anna Popplewell and Georgie Henley as Edmund, Peter, Susan and Lucy Pevensie while other cast members included Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan, James McAvoy as Mr. Tumnus and Tilda Swinton as the White Witch. In sequels, Ben Barnes played the titular Prince Caspian and Will Poulter popped up as the annoying cousin Eustace in Voyage of the Dawn Treader. So will any of them be back? Gordon told Collider:
No, it's all going to be a brand new franchise. All original. All original characters, different directors, and an entire new team that this is coming from.
The reporter clarified in the interview that when Gordon says "original characters," he doesn't mean they've created them from scratch. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair will feature characters from the world of Narnia that we haven't seen in the movies yet.
However, that seems rather difficult when you consider the story follows an elder King Caspian enlisting the help of Aslan to find his missing son Prince Rilian, the king's one and only heir. The lion brings Eustace Scrubb and Jill Pole into the mix in order to find the prince. So if there won't be any characters from the original franchise in this movie, then a lot is going to differ from the book.
At this point, the reboot angle is the best approach to C.S. Lewis' classic series. But I also feel like the ship has sailed on this franchise. One of the driving forces behind the popularity of the first Chronicles of Narnia was because everyone was big on fantasy thanks to the success of Lord of the Rings. Since the first film in the franchise didn't exactly match the same level of quality, interest waned and not even curiosity brought audiences back to the theaters.
As for when we might see this project get off the ground, Gordon says, "We're hoping to be able to make the movie very shortly. We're very excited about it." So stay tuned to see how this new approach to Chronicles of Narnia pans out.
Anyone out there interested in more Chronicles of Narnia?