Greta Gerwig Says ‘Narnia’ Is Inspired by David Bowie, Confirms Meryl Streep Is Voicing Aslan: ‘I Wanted Someone Profound but Not Pretentious’

Greta Gerwig is reuniting with her “Little Women” star Meryl Streep on “Narnia,” the director’s adaptation of the C.S. Lewis fantasy series. Streep is voicing Aslan, the mythical lion who creates the mystical world of Narnia.

“I wanted someone who was profound but not pretentious, who had gravitas but not morose self-seriousness. Someone who could communicate depth and pathos as well as joy and delight,” Gerwig told Empire in a cover story about the upcoming film. “I wanted someone who was older than 70, so there was a wisdom of experience, but who also had the capacity of fresh wonder, like a child. And also to be one of the greatest actors to ever do it. That list is not a long one.”

David Bowie was a source of inspiration, both for the look of Aslan (who has multicolored eyes and a red-striped face in this version) as well as the essence of the movie, according to Gerwig. She described wanting the movie to be “big and transporting” and feel like a “rock opera.”

“David Bowie saved my life. Paul McCartney saved my life. David Gilmour saved my life. Pete Townshend saved my life. Jimmy Page, Robert Plant,” Gerwig told Empire. “When I heard their music, I had this deep sense of [thinking], ‘You’re gonna be OK.’”

As it relates to the fantasy adventure, she says, “Narnia is literally a world made out of music. It is a world sung to life by Aslan, and rock ’n’ roll to me felt like a world made out of music.”

“The Magician’s Nephew” is Gerwig’s much-anticipated follow-up to “Barbie,” her Oscar-winning box office sensation starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling. “The Magician’s Nephew” serves as a prequel to “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and follows two children, Digory and Polly, who are the first to discover the “Wood between the Worlds,” aka Narnia, after their uncle (Daniel Craig) gives them a magical ring. David McKenna, Beatrice Campbell, Emma Mackey, Carey Mulligan and Ciarán Hinds round out the cast.

Previously slated for Thanksgiving 2026, “Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew” will open in theaters on Feb. 12, 2027, before landing on Netflix on April 2.