New Trailer for Greta Gerwig’s Narnia Adaptation

The recently released trailer for Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of “Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew” offers a stunning glimpse into a world being created. While C.S. Lewis fans are excited to see Aslan and the White Witch, my attention is drawn to Uncle Andrew. He’s quite possibly the most unsettling character in the book because he embodies a skillful self-denial of the truth.

This brings up a concerning question about Gerwig’s approach: Will she stay true to Lewis’s Christian narrative or will she reinterpret its meaning, altering its significance?

As we see with Uncle Andrew, he represents the phenomenon of those who can become so adept at self-justification that they stop listening altogether. A director might appreciate Lewis’s imaginative elements while discarding the deeper meaning that gives them value.

As someone who teaches philosophy and serves as a pastor, I understand the allure of bending the truth. Education can illuminate, but it can also arm us with sophisticated excuses to dismiss uncomfortable facts. Just having a vast vocabulary doesn’t equate to having intellectual honesty.

Lewis paints Uncle Andrew as a figure who believes that his superior intellect excuses him from obligations that others must uphold. For him, keeping one’s word is for the “common folk.” Fueled by knowledge of the occult, he risks children’s lives, believing his cowardice to be some sort of exceptional quality.

This kind of thinking isn’t new. It’s a familiar vice: remarkable skill supposedly grants one unique moral authority. It’s how radical academics justify dismissing established norms, as well as how politicians rationalize risky ideologies for a promised better future. Those who see themselves as intellectually superior often feel entitled to rewrite rules they impose on others.

Then, of course, Uncle Andrew encounters Aslan.

At first, the Lion’s melody captivates him. It evokes emotions and thoughts he’s reluctant to confront. But then he tells himself that no lion can truly sing; it must be a roar instead. The more Aslan sings, the more desperate Andrew becomes in convincing himself of this rationale. Eventually, he can’t even hear the Lion when he’s speaking.

Lewis provides us with a telling insight: “Now the trouble about trying to make yourself stupider than you really are is that you very often succeed.”

Consider the process. Andrew recognizes a truth, pushes it away, and ultimately becomes unable to see it at all. His ignorance is something he learned, not a natural state. What appears to be a lack of intellectual capacity is actually a moral decision.

This is precisely why I have reservations about the film. A filmmaker can celebrate Lewis’s vibrant worlds without genuinely honoring the Creator behind them. She might keep the characters but alter the underlying moral fabric, leading to something that resembles Narnia but isn’t really Lewis’s vision.

A good story imparts more than just familiar faces and settings. It communicates what is virtuous, what has gone awry, and what restoration requires. To Lewis, creation is the work of a benevolent Creator. Sin demands repentance, and redemption is something humanity cannot achieve by simply claiming enlightenment.

I suppose it is possible for a director to portray this vision accurately without sharing Lewis’s faith. Still, they must remain open to having their own beliefs questioned. If Gerwig turns Lewis’s Christian depiction of creation into a palatable reflection of contemporary cultural ideals, she’s making Uncle Andrew’s fatal mistake: misinterpreting Aslan’s song as mere noise.

The trailer, while promising, can’t resolve this debate. I suppose I’ll reserve judgment until the finished film is released. My concern is how often Hollywood alters narratives that offer inconvenient truths. Adaptations should not become mere platforms for reinterpreting the creator’s intent.

That said, Christians should be cautious about letting themselves off the hook too easily. Uncle Andrew serves as more than just a caricature of a misguided professor or an out-of-touch politician; Lewis’s cautionary tale resonates with the church too.

In Romans 1, Paul speaks of those who stifle truth in their unrighteousness. God reveals himself through the natural world, yet people choose not to honor or give thanks to Him. Consequently, their reasoning becomes futile, and their hearts darkened. They profess wisdom but become fools instead.

This isn’t to say that every non-believer simply lacks information. Our desires often dictate what we’re willing to acknowledge. We can demand further evidence while ignoring the implications of what we already know.

Christians can fall into this trap as well. We may recognize God’s presence in creation and yet craft convenient justifications to overlook it. We understand biblical mandates, yet our reasoning often convinces us that our unique circumstances exempt us. Defending beloved Christian literature can sometimes feel easier than genuinely submitting to the God celebrated within its pages.

This is why Uncle Andrew deserves a place in broader Christian reflection, rather than being merely a talking point in a discussion about a Netflix film. We ought to ask ourselves whether our rationalizations clarify the truth or serve as shields against it. Can we face the possibility that our smart-sounding logic is simply an excuse? Will we acknowledge when God’s message challenges what we wish to cling to?

Christ offers forgiveness to those who have spent significant time justifying their shortcomings. His grace grants us the strength to shed our excuses instead of perfecting them.

My hope is that Gerwig honors Lewis’s vision faithfully. The completed film will reveal whether she has succeeded. In the meantime, we each should engage in self-examination. God communicates through His Word, and Uncle Andrew illustrates how one can become so adept at self-defense that they lose the capacity to truly listen.