Greta Gerwig was pitching a Chronicles of Narnia movie to Netflix before she realized she wanted to make it.The year was 2019 and her frequent collaborator/husband Noah Baumbach was in the midst of the Netflix rollout for his own passion project, Marriage Story. Meanwhile Gerwig was fresh off the release of her solo directorial debut, Lady Bird, and on the eve of her second feature opening: Little Women. She was a renowned filmmaker with two Oscar nominations to her name, but she was also still an indie maven who simply wanted to corner Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos. At the time, it was just to enthusiastically advise him that Netflix should absolutely begin its recently acquired Chronicles of Narnia adaptations by making The Magician’s Nephew first. It’s technically the sixth published fantasy novel by C.S. Lewis set in the mythical realm of Narnia, but it’s also the first chronological book in the narrative, acting as a prequel to The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.“Would you like to write it?” Sarandos asked Gerwig on the spot. The filmmaker was floored, and yet also undeniably intrigued as a lifelong fan of Lewis’ fantasy series and the magic they represent to many, many generations.A Universe Begins. See how Narnia was created in Narnia: The Magician's Nephew, a film by Greta Gerwig – only in theaters February 12. pic.twitter.com/jwxksCL0N7— Netflix (@netflix) October 13, 2026She recounted as much during a heartfelt presentation of The Magician’s Nephew’s first trailer Tuesday morning in New York City. Sitting beside fellow Lewis and fantasy enthusiast Stephen Colbert, Gerwig recounted both her earliest passions for the books, as well as how that was shared by everyone she collaborated with. Hence in the below trailer, you can even hear the shocking strains of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven,” an iconic 1971 rock anthem that Gerwig said spoke to her with its narrative poetry about faith, as well as the danger of following false idols—a menace that any fan of Magician’s Nephew or the later Narnia books would recognize.Famously, though, Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant and Jimmy Page do not let any filmmaker or movie use their music, especially that song. And yet—like Gerwig—they grew up with Narnia and granted permission for “Stairway to Heaven” after she showed them a cut of Magician’s Nephew months ahead of the film’s February release.The use of the song in the trailer (and presumably the film) certainly signals a bold vision for the adaptation, anachronistically combining a story set in London circa 1900 with post-‘60s rock ’n roll. Similarly, Emma Mackey’s White Witch in her go-go minidress looks like she’s ready for a night out in Soho London during Zeppelin’s heyday. But the anachronism—and vote of confidence from a notoriously film-shy rock band—makes an unmistakable promise: this interpretation of Narnia will be much more personal and filmmaker-driven than the Disney iterations that tackled the first three published Narnia novels in the early 2000s.cnx.cmd.push(function() {cnx({playerId: "106e33c0-3911-473c-b599-b1426db57530",}).render("0270c398a82f44f49c23c16122516796");});Indeed, during the presentation Gerwig spoke eloquently, and even tearfully, about how important these books were to her growing up. “They were read to me before I could even read,” Gerwig told the audience (in a presentation where no recording was allowed, so our quoting is done by memory). “My mother read them to me, and then I read them and reread them after I learned to read.” Her parents even got the first television set Greta knew so their daughter could watch the BBC version of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe on PBS (“I have no notes for BBC!” the director said.)She later surmised that the Chronicles of Narnia as a collective were “one of the two books that made me,” noting that the most significant childhood novels shape who we are. “For me, those books were just as much C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia as Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.” Getting to interpret both in her own voice on the big screen is something the filmmaker seems visibly thankful for and, perhaps, still a little awed with responsibility by.Yet that is why she felt so strongly about beginning with The Magician’s Nephew. Like most children, her original exposure to Narnia is through Lewis’ first published fantasy novel, The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, which she read as a kid, followed by Prince Caspian. She didn’t get to The Magician’s Nephew until near the end of the series, as the penultimate story ahead of The Last Battle. However, as a young adult she discovered in a letter Lewis wished new readers to start with Magician’s Nephew, which chronicles the genesis of Narnia.“I love the idea of beginning with the start of a universe,” Gerwig explained, and setting a stage for a movie saga that can run the entire cycle from Narnia’s rise (Magician) to its eventual end (The Final Battle). “The image of Aslan singing a universe into existence” specifically stuck with Gerwig. As did the sense of faith in the novels, something Gerwig grew to appreciate after attending Catholic School as a child (hence Lady Bird). She admitted she always conflated the communal experience of going to church with the only other she knew growing up: the movies.Now as a filmmaker, she sought to literally walk in Lewis’ footsteps. Not only did she reread the Narnia books, but much else of what Lewis wrote, including Mere Christianity and The Problem of Pain. Additionally, she traveled to Oxford, Cambridge, and Belfast in order to try to see the world through his eyes.Netflix, meanwhile, seems to be peering at it through Gerwig’s, backing her way into this saga and also supporting her to the hilt more than any previous filmmaker by making Narnia a theatrical event. When Magician’s Nephew opens next February, it will be the first Netflix-produced movie to have a 50-day theatrical window in wide release, including on IMAX screens.“I can only write for the big screen,” Gerwig explained and she expressed gratitude for Sarandos and Netflix supporting that instinct. The Netflix CEO apparently encouraged Gerwig to write it for the biggest screen she could, and now it’s about to make history for the streamer at the largest theatrical venues in the world. Maybe a new universe really is beginning.Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew opens in theaters on Feb. 12.The post How Greta Gerwig Got Led Zeppelin’s Support and THAT Song in Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew appeared first on Den of Geek.