After over 14 years, The Chronicles of Narnia is expected to return to the screen, with Netflix preparing to reboot the franchise. Viewers who want to catch up on the franchise before the new movies arrive can use our guide to find out how to watch the Chronicles of Narnia adaptations in order on platforms like Disney+ and more!
The Chronicles of Narnia began as a wildly popular seven-book children’s series by C.S. Lewis, which told stories about the fantastical realm of Narnia.
Lewis’ books were adapted to television multiple times. A black-and-white miniseries based on Lewis’ first book, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, premiered in 1967. Sadly, all but two episodes of the series have been lost. In 1979, animator Bill Melendez, best known for his work on Peanuts animated specials, directed an animated adaptation of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. However, it struggled under the limitations of animation at the time.
The first adaptation to come close to capturing the magic of the books was BBC’s TV series, The Chronicles of Narnia. It consisted of three TV serials — The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Prince Caspian and the Voyage of the Dawn Treader, and The Silver Chair — which adapted the first four novels in Lewis’ series. The series earned high critical acclaim for its charming, modest glimpse into the fantasy world, focusing more on imagination and the book’s themes than grand visuals.
By the 2000s, Lewis’ estate finally felt confident technology had advanced enough to do justice to his work and sold Walden Media the film rights to the books. In 2005, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe premiered. The movie follows Peter (William Moseley), Susan (Anna Popplewell), Edmund (Skandar Keynes), and Lucy Pevensie (Georgia Henley), four children who are evacuated from London during World War II and find themselves in a new home with a portal to Narnia, where they join forces with King Aslan (Liam Neeson) to fight the White Witch (Tilda Swinton).
The movie was faithful to the source material and an ambitious and visually appealing fantasy film for the whole family. Given its success, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian soon followed. In the sequel, the four Pevensie children are pulled back to Narnia to help Prince Caspian (Ben Barnes) overthrow King Miraz (Sergio Castellito). The sequel was followed by a third movie, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, in which Edmund (Keynes), Lucy (Henley), and their cousin Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter) embark on another adventure to Narnia.
Neither of the sequels was as big a box office hit as the original, but they all performed moderately well critically and commercially. However, Walden Media ran into an issue after the third film when its contract with Lewis’ estate expired. Two planned sequels, The Magician’s Nephew and The Silver Chair, ultimately never happened. Fortunately, Netflix appears to be moving ahead with its reboot, with Greta Gerwig attached to direct at least one of the Narnia movies.
Where to watch The Chronicles of Narnia movies and TV shows online
Check out our list below to find out where to stream the Narnia movies in the U.S. While many older adaptations are only available on DVD, you can request JustWatch to notify you if they become available for streaming. Also, the adaptations have only one viewing order, as the release date and chronological order are the same.
