Little Women and Barbie filmmaker Greta Gerwig has secured a major concession from Netflix for her upcoming adaptation of CS Lewis' novel series The Chronicles of Narnia. Netflix has agreed to grant the film an exclusive two-week theatrical release through Imax worldwide, leading up to its debut on the streaming platform. Puck first broke the news.

Narnia is scheduled for an Imax launch on Thanksgiving Day 2026, followed by its Netflix premiere on Christmas. This marks a significant departure for Netflix's typical strategy, which usually favours a direct-to-streaming release, especially for commercially driven projects. While the streamer occasionally grants limited theatrical runs to Oscar contenders, a wide-release Imax engagement is a rarity.

Gerwig, whose Barbie broke box office records in 2023, has been attached to the Narnia project since 2020. Netflix acquired the rights to the beloved fantasy series in 2018 and aims to turn it into a major franchise. The seven books in the Narnia series have sold more than 115 million copies worldwide, making it a potentially lucrative property for the streaming giant.