Last week, Chadwick — our own director of awesome, astonishment, and acuity — coined a phrase that should catch on because it makes complete sense.
The Netflix Treatment
Some CBMs need more plot and character development. Some science fiction movies require much more than gripping CGI. Ergo, Netflix opens the doors to a series instead of a show. We get more than we bargained for when a good idea becomes a great series.
So where could Netflix go next? We have the answer: Narnia!
When Hollywood got a glimpse of the fantasy filled realm of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, it resurrected all the childhood interest in J.R.R. Tolkien’s nether regions of Middle Earth. As we know, the films were instant classics. Of course, Amazon wants to reboot these nearly perfect movies, so whatevs.
But speaking of reboots, Netflix announced it would be producing an unforgettable saga for all seven books of the C.S. Lewis masterpiece The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe.
Remember when nerds were all about the ballyhoo created by Frodo Baggins’ expedition? For some reason, that’s when Disney and Walden Media thought it would be a good idea to shove the Pevensie kids in our face and through their parents’ wardrobe closet.
Narnia deserved so much better in terms of promotions, characterization, and CGI (Aslan needed someone to brush his hair badly). And now, thanks to Netflix, all seven books get it!
Long Live The King
FYI this is the first time a company has had the rights to *all* of the books. Prepare your wardrobes.
— NX (@NXOnNetflix) October 3, 2018
Check that out! All seven books given to a production house for the first time ever. Many fans (present company included) have read the books and was full of whimsy, and then when the movies got here, our little balloon squealed as it lost its air immediately.
What can we expect?
“C.S. Lewis’ beloved Chronicles of Narnia stories have resonated with generations of readers around the world,” said Netflix’s chief content officer Ted Sarandos. “Families have fallen in love with characters like Aslan and the entire world of Narnia, and we’re thrilled to be their home for years to come.”
When Netflix takes a challenge, the non-stop content house usually delivers. This will be a seemingly perpetual series — seven books, multifaceted characters, religious allegories, and some of the best writing available for screenplay.
With the aforementioned (and needless) reboot of LOTR and HBO’s much-deserved cash cow Game of Thrones, it was just a matter of time before this happened. But here?! The Netflix treatment is certainly a thing, and now we get to witness its full power in fantasy.
“It is wonderful to know that folks from all over are looking forward to seeing more of Narnia, and that the advances in production and distribution technology have made it possible for us to make Narnian adventures come to life all over the world,” said Douglas Gresham, stepson of C.S. Lewis, in a statement released by Netflix. “Netflix seems to be the very best medium with which to achieve this aim, and I am looking forward to working with them towards this goal.”
A release date for The Chronicles of Narnia is yet to be revealed but suffice to say, fantasy pants are flying everywhere today.
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