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Greta Gerwig’s highly anticipated adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew is slowly stepping out of the wardrobe. Today, Empire Magazine dropped a massive (initial) world-exclusive first look at the upcoming fantasy epic, and with it, officially confirmed one of the most hotly debated casting rumors in recent Netflix history: Meryl Streep will indeed be voicing Aslan.

If you’ve been following our coverage here at What’s on Netflix, you’ll know that ever since Deadline first reported the possibility of Streep taking on the iconic role of the Great Lion, the Narnia fandom has been fiercely divided. The idea of gender-bending the traditionally male, Christ-like figure of Aslan had fans split between cautious optimism and outright concern. Some argued it could spell disaster for the franchise, while others trusted the vision of the acclaimed Barbie and Little Women director.

Well, the debate is over. The casting is officially locked in, and Greta Gerwig has finally spoken out about why the legendary actress was the perfect—and only—choice for her version of Narnia’s deity.

Speaking to Empire for their November 2026 cover story, Gerwig explained her rationale behind reuniting with Streep:

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. 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.

Interestingly, the article still refers to the lion as being a he, which is much of the contention. 

Beyond the casting confirmation, Empire’s newsstand cover gives us our very first glimpse at Aslan’s design—and it’s certainly a departure from the 2000s Disney/Fox adaptations.

Gerwig is bringing a highly specific, idiosyncratic vision to C.S. Lewis’s sprawling fantasy. According to the reveal, Aslan’s new look is heavily inspired by none other than David Bowie. The Great Lion sports heterochromic eyes and a striking, bold red-striped visage and seems to have the skin of many other animals. 

For the die-hard fantasy fans, Empire is also releasing an exclusive subscriber cover featuring concept art by Jaime Jones, which depicts the epic, mythical moment from The Magician’s Nephew where Aslan literally sings the world of Narnia into existence. 

In another picture exclusive, we get to see David McKenna and Beatrice Campbell as Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer behind Jadis, who is played by Emma Mackey. Their coverage refers to the movie as a “rock opera” fantasy inspired by Bowie and The Who. Perhaps it’s just me, but I’m getting strong Doctor Who set vibes here. 

While we’ll have to wait for the full magazine to hit newsstands on September 24th for the complete set visits and interviews, the preview did drop a few more confirmations and nuggets. Of course, we already knew about the delayed release date, but we’ve also got confirmation that Gerwig’s adaptation is exploring the ramifications of moving the origin story of Narnia into the 1950s. We’ve been covering this through set-picture stories throughout production. 

It’s clear that Netflix is betting big on Gerwig to deliver a Narnia unlike anything we’ve seen before. With the release just over a year away, the marketing machine officially roared to life yesterday with the logo and official BTS still reveal. 

Are you won over by Greta Gerwig’s reasoning for casting Meryl Streep as Aslan? What do you think of the Bowie-inspired design? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below!