Only a few female actresses have the kind of smooth and spectacular transition from the acting chair to the director's shoes that Greta Gerwig happily enjoys. After delivering some heart-touching works in Ladybird and the classic and critically acclaimed Little Women, Gerwig introduced the world to her take on Barbie. Shattering records and making the pink history of the biggest 2023 movie, Gerwig is now ready to bring another classic to life, the Narnia movies, with IMAX this Thanksgiving.

But IMAX’s CEO has some bold words to share on the upcoming movies before they ultimately settle down for good on Netflix.

After its November release, Greta Gerwig’s Chronicles of Narnia will only get a two-week window at the box office for collection before it goes over to Netflix. IMAX CEO Rich Gelfond, who is currently at the Cannes Film Festival, Paris, addressed this matter during a luncheon and press conference, Deadline reports. As per the CEO, IMAX is not concerned about the difference between moviegoers’ demands and those of Netflix subscribers. "We’re quite confident that won’t matter,” said Gelfond. 

Gelfond feels that IMAX is so differentiated from the streaming experience that they have no worries about it. Speaking on the difference between IMAX cinema lovers and streaming services, Rich Gelfond explained that Netflix is in a different business, and that is selling subscriptions. In structuring the deal, they try to accommodate how to meet the needs of both parties. The CEO also feels that PVOD at 17 days does not really hurt the IMAX box office. This might be a disappointment for Greta Gerwig, who fought hard for the theatrical release.

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A visionary in possession of extreme talent, Greta Gerwig has had to fight to win the box office rights before the movie went to Netflix.

Some time ago, tensions were high as Netflix was engaged in a cold war with Greta Gerwig, who had a larger-than-life vision for the Chronicles of Narnia. For this adaptation, she cited the material’s scope to emphasize and stand by the importance of a theatrical release and fought tooth and nail. After a long back-and-forth between the director and the platform, Ted Sarandos finally agreed to an exclusive IMAX release. But they had a major condition as and asked to tag the movie as a “Netflix/IMAX” title from the get-go. 

After the release on November 26, 2025, Chronicles of Narnia in the format across 1,000 auditoriums in 90 countries, the movie will make its streaming debut on Netflix this Christmas. The third-week theaters run will depend on the demand of the film hitting some non-IMAX theaters before going to Netflix, something that even Rich Gelfond said in the luncheon, that “we have the option to extend the run.” But it all depends on the response of the audience. The Chronicles of Narnia have long made news for the difference between Gerwig and Netflix for multiple reasons, but this small theatre window could still be a bummer for Gerwig.

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What are your thoughts on Narnia’s limited run on the box office and its eventual Netflix arrival? Share with us below.