How many Narnia movies are there?

We are bang in the middle of a pandemic and life has never been iffier. The shift from hectic workdays at the office to snug home workspaces has made room for some cozy reading and movie-binge sessions, leaving us all a tad bit happier. If you want to re-watch your childhood favorites or catch up on movies that you missed, now is the time to do it. A series we’d highly suggest would have to be ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’.

How many movies has the franchise released?

• Narnia: The Lion, The Witch & the Wardrobe
• Narnia: The Prince Caspian
• Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

The movies in this series were quite the rage, back in the mid-2000s and early 2010. The production house, Walt Disney has released three movies so far, as part of the film’s franchise. The first movie is ‘The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe’ which came out in the year 2005. The second film, ‘Prince Caspian’ was released in the year 2008 and the third installment of the series, ‘The Voyage of the Dawn Treader’ came out in 2010. The production house has lined up the fourth film in the series – ‘The Silver Chair’, but nothing is confirmed as of yet. Walt Disney Studios is also in talks with Netflix to curate a series and web films that will continue the stories of Narnia.

How did the movies come into existence?

The first movie in the franchise – ‘The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe’, was released in the year 2005 and was inspired by C.S. Lewis’ fantasy novel series –The Chronicles of Narnia, published in the year 1950. The movie versions of this franchise have been adapted from the novels under this series but tweaked to suit audiences of those times.

What should you know about books?

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S Lewis is a set of 7 novels, with its background set in the fictional world of Narnia. The main characters dwell in England where they lead typical, boring, conventional lives. All of this changes when they walk into a wardrobe, only to find the world of Narnia. The rest of the story and novels cover the various adventures that the main characters are engulfed in, in the realm of Narnia. The novels explore various fictional, mythical creatures and an almost breathtaking plot.

If you’re into books over movies, this would be the perfect all-week read. Hot chocolate and the entrapment of a good fantasy series sounds very welcoming, doesn’t it?

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

The first film in the franchise was released on the 9th of December, 2005 and was directed by Andrew Adamson. The movie starts with four British siblings being transferred from London to the countryside. During a game of Hide and Seek, the youngest, Lucy, finds herself hiding in a wardrobe that leads to an unknown province. The story moves forward to the siblings discovering Narnia but eventually gets trapped in a war with the White Witch. They forge a relationship with Aslan ( a Lion ) and eventually, win this battle.

Prince Caspian

The second movie in the franchise was released in May 2008, directed by Andrew Adamson. This movie revisits the characters of the previous movies, albeit, many grown-up versions of them, going back to the wardrobe. Fast forward to 1300 years later in Narnia, a realm struggling to fight its corrupt leader and Caspian’s uncle, King Miraz. The siblings lend their support to Prince Caspian with the secret help of Aslan for the throne.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

This film was released on the 10th of December in 2010 and was directed by Michael Apted. This movie follows the younger siblings return to the kingdom of Narnia along with their cousin through a painting of an ocean where they are rescued from the ocean in Narnia by the Dawn Treader. Caspian is now the King of Narnia and has to rescue the seven lost lords while the siblings protect Narnia from an evil entity residing on the dark island. They are tested along the way, on their journey to Aslan’s home at the far end of the world.

Yet to be released projects

The franchise has a Netflix series and films in the pipeline, that they are working on alongside C.S Lewis Company. This will revisit the plots of the films but will mostly be a true adaptation from the books written by C.S Lewis.

The book, ‘The Silver Chair’, is supposedly going to be made into a feature film, but nothing is concrete as of now. We can only hope, that the franchise picks up.

Book v/s Movies

Now, this is a tough one! As a voracious reader, I am inclined towards the intoxicating, heady smell of books, and the idea of reading. But, then, I also love movies. So this is a rather difficult choice. The books are a real treat to your imagination and addictive too. The movies on the other hand are a beautiful escape. The visuals are magnificent and the cast, simply brilliant!

We’d say, do both! The movies don’t stick to all that is in the book and are tweaked to cater to dramatic audiences. If you’re a film fanatic and don’t care about fictional facts, just watching the movies will suffice. Otherwise, you can always read the books post-binge-watching.

The Verdict

Grab your bucket of popcorn, pour yourself a glass of soda, switch on your Television sets or laptops, and get started! If you’ve already watched all three films, there’s no harm in watching them all over again, no?

We hope this guide helped you get to know all there is to know about the books and movies about Narnia. If you have any more questions, feel free to reach out to us using the comments section below.