C.S. Lewis, the beloved Christian author who wrote the seven-book series “The Chronicles of Narnia,” created the talking lion character Aslan as a representation of Jesus Christ – who walked the earth as both “man” and God.
Yet the latest film version of one of the books, “The Magician’s Nephew,” opening in February, will have the mighty lion voiced by a woman – actress Meryl Streep. And that fact reportedly has made the Lewis family “very upset.”
Longtime Christian film critic and founder of MovieGuide Ted Baehr recently told CBN News he had visited with Tim Gresham – the son of 80-year-old Douglas Gresham, Lewis’ stepson.
“C.S. Lewis would be turning over in his grave. His family is very upset about it, and I think we should be upset about it,” Baehr said of the decision to cast Streep.
“Theologically this is a tremendous heresy, and it’s a tremendous problem. … So it shouldn’t happen.”
Baehr said the Lewis family agrees with many Christian Narnia fans that the voicing of a mane-sporting male lion who represents Christ by a female is simply wrong.
Watch the Baehr interview:
Baehr also mentioned the family is trying to regain control over the C.S. Lewis Company, which made an agreement with Netflix in 2018 to make Narnia films and series.
Continued Baehr about the casting decision: “Because God the Father, and Jesus the Son and the Holy Spirit and, of course, the whole process leads toward ‘The Last Battle,’ and ‘The Last Battle’ represents Jesus in Heaven,” he said in reference to the final “Narnia” book.
“If God is a Father, He is not Meryl Streep pretending to be a father. He’s not trans. He’s the Father, He’s our Father. He loves us, He adopts us.
“You have to have God as a Father. You can’t have God being voiced as a woman. This is not theologically correct.”
A year ago, Baehr wrote a column for WorldNetDaily entitled “An open letter to producers of the new ‘Narnia’ movies.” He pointed out that a vast Christian audience loves the Narnia series and warned Netflix not to squander the opportunity to draw in those believers by instead betraying the Lewis books and their intent. Baehr even included a request at the time regarding Aslan:
“Respectful portrayal of Aslan:
– Aslan depicted with reverence, majesty and divine authority
– Avoid trivializing or reinterpreting Aslan’s role as a Christ figure
– Voice and visual design that evoke awe and spiritual depth that maintain the key Christlike attributes of an awe-inspiring Aslan as an authentic allegory of Jesus Christ.”
The announcement of Streep’s involvement occurred earlier this month.
Meryl Streep will officially voice Aslan in Greta Gerwig’s ‘NARNIA: THE MAGICIAN’S NEPHEW’.
? https://t.co/VPXM5XAY0l pic.twitter.com/H5VYmi8BcH
— Film Crave (@_filmcrave) September 17, 2026
One X user posted an apt quote from the author himself:
“I don’t think evil, in the strict sense, can create. It can spoil something that Another has created.” – C.S. Lewis
The Netflix-produced movie is directed by Greta Gerwig. Other aspects of the latest film that depart from the historical Narnia themes also are getting criticism from fans of the film series.
Empire online quoted Gerwig about her decision to cast 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,” Gerwig tells Empire of casting Streep as Narnia’s deity-of-sorts. “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.”
While no trailer has been released of the film, a series of still images representing “The Magician’s Nephew” were shared with Empire magazine, summarized here:
WorldNetDaily caught up with Baehr to further discuss the controversy surrounding the film.
He explained that Gerwig is not consciously anti-Jesus, but that her worldview is influenced by the fact “she is a feminist, Unitarian Universalist” – and her theology, then, is a far cry from trinitarian Christianity.
Even so, Baehr told WND Gerwig is “a great filmmaker.” His MovieGuide organization gave high marks to her earlier movie “Barbie.”
Baehr predicts Gerwig’s final version of “The Magician’s Nephew” “is probably going to destroy the Genesis allegory” – which is the main purpose and thrust of the book.
So, will the female Aslan issue or any other deviations from traditional Narnia cause Christians to boycott “The Magician’s Nephew”? Baehr says likely not.
“A lot of Christians are not that committed,” Baehr said, noting that he’s seen countless times Christians supporting entertainment that does not uphold biblical values.
