The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
The beloved masterpiece comes to life.
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (2005)
Production
Budget
$180 000 000
Revenue
$745 013 115
Director
Scenario
C.S. Lewis
Author
Composer
Producer
Actors
Georgie Henley
Lucy Pevensie
Skandar Keynes
Edmund Pevensie
William Moseley
Peter Pevensie
Anna Popplewell
Susan Pevensie
Tilda Swinton
White Witch
Liam Neeson
Aslan (voice)
James McAvoy
Mr. Tumnus
Jim Broadbent
Prof. Digory Kirke
Short description
During the Second World War, four siblings are sent from London to the countryside home of an elderly professor to keep them safe from the bombing. While playing in the house, Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter Pevensie discover a wardrobe that leads them into Narnia, a land of talking animals, fauns, centaurs, dwarfs and giants. Narnia has fallen under the rule of the White Witch, Jadis, whose power has held the country in endless winter. A prophecy says four children will help the lion Aslan break her hold on the land, and the siblings find themselves drawn into the struggle against her.
The film is a fantasy adventure adapted from C. S. Lewis's novel, directed by Andrew Adamson, who wrote the screenplay with Ann Peacock and Christopher Markus. It followed his two Shrek films and was his first live-action feature; he later returned to Narnia with Prince Caspian. Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley and Anna Popplewell play the four children, with Tilda Swinton as the White Witch and Liam Neeson providing the voice of Aslan.
Made for about 180 million dollars, it took roughly 745 million dollars worldwide, a strong return on its budget. On IMDb it holds 6.9/10 from around 456,000 votes, while on TMDB it stands at 7.1/10 from far fewer votes. A critics' rating of 7.1/10 from 216 reviews puts professional assessment in line with the wider audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- Georgie Henley’s (who played Lucy) reaction to James McAvoy’s character by the lamppost was completely genuine. She hadn't seen McAvoy in costume before the filming of that scene, so her fright was not at all acted. Her first reaction to the snow-covered Narnia was also genuine. Before filming, her eyes were covered, and she was brought onto the set and placed right in the middle of the decorations, hence the authenticity of her joyful surprise.
- The film was shot mostly in chronological order. Only the final scene, where the children fall out of the wardrobe, was filmed before all the outdoor scenes, so that the children would look pale, as in the beginning of the film.
- Brian Cox was originally supposed to voice the lion named Aslan, but Liam Neeson ultimately took on the role. Incidentally, the word “aslan” translates to “lion” from Turkish.
- Real lions were not used in the film, simply because director Andrew Adamson wanted to film a scene in which Georgie Henley's character reaches out and touches Aslan's face. It took approximately ten hours to create the computer-generated lion and its mane (which consisted of 5.2 million individual hairs).
- Despite this film being merely a test run for the adaptation of C.S. Lewis's stories, the producers had already acquired the rights to adapt the entire series, which comprises seven books.
- At the 102nd minute, there is a moment when Edmund loses blood on his lower lip, but it was present before and will reappear in the following battle.
- Tilda Swinton was not familiar with the works of C.S. Lewis before filming her role as the White Witch. Her costume included shoes with high soles (to make her appear taller), and during breaks between takes she used a special support to rest from the weight of the wig and crown.
- Initially, the plan was to use a real lion and its models in the film, but when the crew received test computer graphics showing two girls walking down the street with a lion, they decided to create the lion using computer graphics.
- When the adults began to swear too much during filming, Georgie Henley would fine them. It is said that James McAvoy swore the most often. Among the children, Skandar Keynes (who played Edmund) most often had to pay the fines.
- The role of the White Witch, Jadis, was originally intended for Michelle Pfeiffer, but the actress was forced to decline due to family circumstances. Michelle was the only movie star the producers decided to approach. Ultimately, the role of the Witch went to Tilda Swinton, who did not read the book before filming began.
- The film had two false working titles: "The Hundred Year Winter" and "Paravel." Signs in Oklande, helping the crew reach the set, read "Paravel" in order to mislead fans trying to get onto the set.
- The film is based on C.S. Lewis's novel "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (1950).
- Anna Popplewell is afraid of mice, so a stunt double played her in all the scenes with mice.
- During filming, William Moseley constantly bumped Georgie Henley with the hilt of his sword, causing her to stumble and fall.
- Douglas Gresham, a co-producer of the film, is C.S. Lewis's stepson.
- The filmmakers wanted to bring 12 reindeer to New Zealand to pull the Snow Queen’s sleigh. However, the Ministry of Agriculture opposed this idea, citing Chronic Wasting Disease, which affects many North American deer. This disease can easily be transmitted from animals to humans. To avoid exposing the film crew to serious risk, they decided to replace the reindeer with wolves (and also reduce the number of animals in the team to six).
- The juice of the Fireflower – a magical potion of Lucy’s – heals any wounds, healed Edmund’s mortal injuries, but did not heal the scratches and scrapes on his face.
- William Moseley was chosen for the role of Peter out of 3,000 boys. After getting the role, he dropped out of school to focus on learning his lines.
- Real animals were used for the role of the wolves in the film, although some were created using computer technology (a couple of individuals). Their tails were removed from the frame using computer technology, but then added back in. In the film, they wag their tails, demonstrating friendliness. Trained animals – a husky-Alaskan Malamute mix – were used in the filming.
- Skandar Keynes was the last of the four children to be cast in the film. By the time he was approved for the role, the others had been together for almost a month, which led to some of his detachment. Keynes disliked it very much when the other children tried to hug him, so director Andrew Adamson instructed the other child actors to hug Keynes more often specifically to elicit negative emotions from him, which he expressed on camera. In the scene where his character follows Lucy into the wardrobe, Keynes did not appear. Anna Popplewell played the scene, simply wearing Keynes’ trousers.
- C.S. Lewis sold the film rights to the entire series of books about Narnia shortly before his death. He was strongly opposed to television adaptations of his works, considering them completely unrealistic, especially the fact that actors in costumes played characters who were not humans. The author's adopted son, Douglas Gresham, agreed to the film adaptation only after seeing a demo reel with animals created using digital technology, and he himself became a co-producer of the project.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
