When adapting a series like The Chronicles of Narnia, you'd think a studio would try to keep the gears going at a steady pace, so as to not lose their leads to age. However, due to middling box office returns, and a myriad of other reasons, the Narnia franchise has only see three films made across five years with two different studios. Now, six years since the last film was released, be prepared for a third studio to jump into the game, as Tri Star Pictures is officially the new studio home for The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Silver Chair.
Entertainment Weekly made the announcement today, as Tri Star share the news with the public. As previously reported, the third sequel to The Chronicles of Narnia focuses not on the Pevensie children, but an adventure dealing with their cousin, Eustace, and his schoolmate, Jill. Their mission: to find Prince Caspian's exiled son, and help him to ascend to rule in Narnia. Life of Pi's David Mcgee is still attached to adapt, with no directing or acting talent currently attached.
Most notably, the role of Eustace was introduced in the most recent film, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Played by Will Poulter, the role was obviously just kicking into its narrative gear, and now will more than likely be recast. We say this because The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair is somehow supposed to serve as a reboot to the C.S. Lewis series' cinematic endeavors, foregoing the retelling of the Pevensie family storyline and continuing where they left off. It's ambitious, but at the same time it seems to give fans the opportunity to accept the first three films as canon, if they really want to.
One of the most interesting aspects of The Chronicles of Narnia franchise is the fact that that The Silver Chair now introduces Tri Star as the third studio to try and make Narnia happen. Disney initiated the game in 2005 with The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, with Prince Caspian keeping the series in play for them in 2008. After two films of profitable, but declining results, Fox took over the franchise for its most recent installment, 2010's The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which was a success on par with Prince Caspian. Which means that it brought in a healthy profit, but it wasn't a record-breaking, long term success of a certain magic based franchise that was ruling Hollywood at the time.
There's a shot that The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair could make the legendary literary franchise a thing of cinematic beauty once more. Should Tri Star's gamble pay off, the torch will be lit again, and the quest to preserve the home of Aslan and others will be on again. We'll see what happens in the near future, as right now there's no directing or acting talent signed for the fourth film. So stay tuned to Cinema Blend, where we'll update you with the latest information, as it arrives.
