Greta Gerwig’s ‘Narnia’ to debut in IMAX theaters before Netflix

[KENNEDY FELTON]

Greta Gerwig, the director behind “Barbie” and “Lady Bird,” is setting the stage for her next project. And in a rare move, it’s heading to IMAX theatres before even hitting your streaming screens.

Puck News was the first to report that ‘Narnia’ – Gerwig’s adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ fantasy series – marks her first foray into the realm of epic storytelling. But it’s not just the scale of the project making headlines… Gerwig has worked out a special deal with Netflix.

The film will debut exclusively in about 1,000 IMAX theatres for two weeks starting Thanksgiving Day 2026, before hitting Netflix on Christmas Day.

It’s a strategy that’s been tested out with previous Netflix releases, though not without a bit of pushback. The streaming giant is known for its direct-to-streaming releases, but in recent years, they’ve given several films a limited theatrical run before making them available to subscribers.

Take ‘The Irishman’ for instance.

“For a meeting… and you’re late.” “What?” “You’re late.”

Director Martin Scorsese’s 2019 film had a brief theatrical run, though it was largely seen as an effort to get Oscar attention.

Likewise, ‘The Trial of the Chicago 7’ and ‘Roma’ had theatrical releases to generate buzz for awards season, with ‘Roma’ going on to win multiple Academy Awards, including Best Foreign Language Film.

More recently, ‘Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery’ follows suit, hitting theaters in a limited run before being released on Netflix. The reason? Netflix aims to expand its reach and visibility, especially for films they want to make an impact with at award shows.

As for Gerwig, the deal was made for ‘Narnia’ before ‘Barbie’s’ success. However, after months of negotiations, she leveraged her power to secure the deal with Netflix, according to Puck. IMAX, Gerwig’s talent agency, and even theater owners weighed in during the negotiations.

With an exclusive IMAX release followed by a holiday streaming debut, this strategy could help ‘Narnia’ keep audiences talking after the credits roll.