Meryl Streep will be voicing Aslan in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ children’s book “The Magician’s Nephew,” news that has been confirmed after over a year of speculation. Some evangelical Christians are reacting with dismay to the choice, as well as to Gerwig’s statement that she took creative inspiration for the film from artists including David Bowie, who was known for his gender-bending persona.
“I wanted someone who was profound but not pretentious, who had gravitas but not morose self-seriousness,” Gerwig told Empire of her decision to cast Meryl Streep as Aslan. “Someone who could communicate depth and pathos as well as joy and delight.”
“I wanted someone who was older than 70, so there was a wisdom of experience, but who also had the capacity of fresh wonder, like a child,” Gerwig said. “And also to be one of the greatest actors to ever do it. That list is not a long one.”
🚨WORLD-EXCLUSIVE FIRST LOOK 🚨
Greta Gerwig opens the doors to Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew in the new issue of Empire – detailing her revolutionary rock’n’roll adaptation.
Here’s your first look at Aslan – and he’s voiced by the legendary Meryl Streep.
On sale Thurs… pic.twitter.com/zsXC1yRkJD
— Empire (@empiremagazine) September 17, 2026
Editor’s note: This article contains spoilers for “The Chronicles of Narnia” book series.
‘The Magician’s Nephew’ Is 1 of 7 Books in CS Lewis’ ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’
Chronologically, “The Magician’s Nephew” is the earliest book in C.S. Lewis’ seven-book series, “The Chronicles of Narnia.” However, Lewis originally wrote “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” first and published the rest in the following order: “Prince Caspian,” “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” “The Silver Chair,” “The Horse and His Boy,” “The Magician’s Nephew,” and “The Last Battle.”
“The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” tells how the Pevensie children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, are evacuated from London during World War II and go to live with Professor Digory Kirke. While staying at Kirke’s country house, they enter a wardrobe and discover the land of Narnia. Narnia is cursed to be in a state of perpetual winter under the rule of the White Witch. The children join the lion Aslan, a Christ figure, in freeing Narnia from her rule.
“The Magician’s Nephew” is set in 1900 and tells how Digory Kirke went to Narnia as a boy with his friend Polly Plummer. There, they witness Aslan creating Narnia by singing it into existence. However, Digory and Polly must contend with Digory’s self-centered Uncle Andrew and an evil sorceress, who both endanger the new world.
Adaptations of Lewis’ beloved series include a 10-part live-action one of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” in 1967 and an animated television adaptation of “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” in 1979. Another, done by the BBC, adapted four of the “Narnia” books for television between 1988 and 1990.
More recently, three of C.S. Lewis’ “Narnia” books were adapted into films released between 2005 and 2010: “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” “Prince Caspian,” and “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.” Those films featured Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan.
RELATED: Prayer App CEO Defends Partnership With Liam Neeson Despite Pro-Abortion Advocacy
Meryl Streep will be voicing Aslan in Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ children’s book The Magician’s Nephew, news that has been confirmed after over a year of speculation.Click to Post