Greta Gerwig Narnia Trailer Opens the Door to The Magician's Nephew

Some movie trailers are just marketing. Every so often, one feels like an invitation. On Tuesday, October 13, Netflix released the first official trailer for Narnia: The Magician's Nephew, the new film written and directed by Greta Gerwig, and it is clear she wants audiences to feel a sense of wonder again.

I grew up in a world where stories like this one taught kids to be brave, to tell the truth and to look out for each other. So when a filmmaker with Gerwig's track record takes on C.S. Lewis, I pay attention. The details below come from reporting by Variety, Polygon, The Hollywood Reporter, The Associated Press and Netflix's own Tudum site.

What the Trailer Shows

According to Variety, the trailer opens with Daniel Craig as Andrew Ketterley, the magician of the title, telling the children that "sometimes one story is the beginning of all the others." He hands them a magic ring that carries them into strange and beautiful lands.

Along the way they meet Jadis, the future White Witch and last Queen of Charn, played by Emma Mackey, and Fledge, a talking horse that can fly. Near the end, a narrator asks, "Have you ever seen a world born?" before viewers catch a glimpse of Aslan, the great lion, voiced by Meryl Streep, singing Narnia into being.

The whole trailer is set to Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven." That alone made headlines, because the band has long been reluctant to license its music for film and television.

The Story Before the Wardrobe

Most people know Narnia through The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, published in 1950. The Magician's Nephew came out in 1955, but it tells the beginning of the story. Polygon notes that it is set about 1,000 years before the wardrobe adventure and works as a prequel to the larger Chronicles of Narnia.

The two young leads are newcomers. David McKenna plays Digory Kirke and Beatrice Campbell plays Polly Plummer. Variety reports that the cast also includes Carey Mulligan and Ciarán Hinds.

Netflix's Tudum site describes this as the first ever adaptation of The Magician's Nephew. Earlier Narnia projects included a BBC miniseries from 1988 to 1990 and three feature films released in 2005, 2008 and 2010.

How Gerwig Got the Job

At a preview event at the AMC Lincoln Square IMAX theater in New York, Gerwig spoke with Stephen Colbert about how the project began. Variety reports that she approached Netflix chief Ted Sarandos at a cocktail party and told him the studio should start with The Magician's Nephew. About 20 minutes later, she said, he asked if she wanted to write it.

"I don't remember a time I didn't know the books," Gerwig said, according to Variety. "I wouldn't be who I am without these books."

She also explained how she cast her two young stars after reviewing thousands of taped auditions over several months. During a screen test, she said, Campbell sniffled and McKenna motioned off camera to get her a tissue. In that moment, Gerwig said, she could see the two of them were already taking care of each other.

Why the Music Matters

Gerwig has described Narnia as "a world made out of music." She told Empire, as quoted by Polygon, that she "wanted a rock opera" and wanted the film to be "big and transporting."

To get "Stairway to Heaven," Gerwig wrote to Robert Plant and Jimmy Page and showed them an early cut of the film. The Hollywood Reporter quoted her as saying, "They saw the heart of the film." That is a strong endorsement from two musicians who rarely say yes.

When You Can See It

This is a big moment for Netflix. Variety reports that Narnia: The Magician's Nephew is the streamer's first movie to receive a global theatrical release. It will open in IMAX and theaters worldwide on February 12, 2027, with sneak previews in IMAX beginning February 10, 2027. It arrives on Netflix on April 2, 2027.

Polygon notes the film had originally been expected in 2026 before Netflix moved the date in May. It is also Gerwig's first feature since Barbie in 2023.

My Take

What stood out to me most was not the special effects. It was what Gerwig said she hopes people feel when they leave the theater. "I hope they laugh. I hope they cry. I hope they feel like they've been on an adventure," she told the audience, according to Variety. She added that she hopes people walk out wanting to make something, because "making something is an act of hope."

That is a message I can stand behind. Whether you grew up with these books or you are about to meet Digory and Polly for the first time, this is one to put on the calendar for February. Bring the kids, bring your parents, and let yourself feel a little wonder again.

Two Young Children Found Safe Within Hours of a Missouri AMBER Alert

Some of the stories I cover on this site do not have happy endings. This one does, and I want to share it, because it shows what can happen when police, families and an entire region move quickly for children who need help.

Early on Tuesday, October 13, two young children who had been taken from their foster home in north St. Louis County were found safe within a few hours. The facts below come from the North County Police Cooperative and from reporting by First Alert 4 (KMOV) and Spectrum News in St. Louis.

What Police Say Happened

According to the North County Police Cooperative, officers were called around 11 p.m. on Monday, October 12, to the 6900 block of Greenway Avenue in Beverly Hills, Missouri. The report was that two children had been taken from their foster home.

The children are ages 2 and 6. Police said they were taken by their noncustodial mother and a male companion. The Missouri State Highway Patrol issued an AMBER Alert for the suspected vehicle in the early hours of Tuesday.

Court records cited by First Alert 4 say the children were moved for several hours between a home in the city of St. Louis and a hotel in Berkeley, and that they were left with other people during that time.

Found Safe Before Dawn

Around 2 a.m., police found both children near the hotel in Berkeley. Officers placed them in protective custody, and medical personnel evaluated them. Spectrum News reported that EMS treated the children at the scene.

St. Louis Metropolitan Police officers located the suspect vehicle and chased three people on foot. All three were arrested near the 5900 block of Lucille Avenue in the Walnut Park West neighborhood, and the AMBER Alert was cancelled.

The North County Police Cooperative thanked the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the Overland Police Department and the Woodson Terrace Police Department for their help.

Where the Case Stands

St. Louis County prosecutors have charged the children's 24 year old mother with two counts of first degree endangering the welfare of a child, according to First Alert 4. She is being held on a $150,000 cash only bond. Court records say she lost custody of the children on October 2.

Prosecutors are still reviewing possible charges against the two other adults. A charge is an accusation, not a finding of guilt, and everyone involved is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

I am choosing not to share more about the family than police have released. These are very young children who have already been through a frightening night, and their privacy matters more than any headline.

Why I Cover These Stories

People sometimes ask me why I write about missing and endangered children alongside everything else on this site. The answer is simple. Every one of these cases is somebody's whole world, and attention is one of the few things ordinary people can give that truly helps.

AMBER Alerts exist for nights like this one. The program began in Texas in 1996 after the abduction and murder of 9 year old Amber Hagerman in Arlington, and the name also stands for America's Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response. Today those alerts reach highway signs, radio, television and the phones in our pockets.

When an alert sounds on your phone at an inconvenient hour, I hope you will read it instead of swiping it away. Look at the vehicle description. Glance at the cars around you. A few seconds of attention from enough people can change how a night ends.

How You Can Help

Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact the North County Police Cooperative at 314-499-6093 or email detective@northcountypolice.com.

If you ever have information about any missing child, call 911 first if a child is in immediate danger. You can also reach the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children 24 hours a day at 1 800 THE LOST (1-800-843-5678) or online at missingkids.org.

Today, two little ones are safe. Let us keep paying attention, keep sharing official alerts, and keep standing up for every child who has not come home yet.

Oakland Cold Case: DNA Restores the Name of Joanie Burdick, Killed in 1969

For more than half a century, a teenage girl killed in an Oakland hotel room had no name in the official record. She was simply Jane Doe. This month, that finally changed.

On October 1, Oakland Police Chief James Beere announced that the victim has been identified as Joanne Yvonne Burdick, known to her family as Joanie. She was 16 years old when she died in 1969. Her killing has never been solved, and investigators say the case remains active.

What Happened on October 2, 1969

According to the Oakland Police Department, as reported by CBS News Bay Area, officers responded on the afternoon of October 2, 1969, to the former Hotel St. Louis on 7th Street. The hotel stood about a block from police headquarters. Inside one of the rooms, officers found a young woman who had died.

Witnesses and hotel staff told police they saw her enter the room with a man shortly after 2:45 p.m. Less than 30 minutes later, employees heard a scream. The man was gone by the time officers arrived. An autopsy determined that she had been strangled.

She carried no identification. Despite the efforts of investigators over the years, no one was able to say who she was. Forensic Magazine reports that she had been listed as a missing person in California at the time, likely a teen who had run away from home.

How DNA Gave Joanie Her Name Back

The breakthrough came from a partnership between Oakland cold case investigators and the FBI. The FBI San Francisco field office formally joined the renewed investigation in 2020, bringing forensic analysis, genealogical expertise and laboratory support.

Investigative genetic genealogy pointed detectives toward a living relative. According to police, that relative was Joanie's brother, who voluntarily provided a DNA sample. The comparison confirmed that the Jane Doe from 1969 was his sister.

An FBI statement shared with reporters said modern forensic tools made it possible to revisit evidence that could not be fully analyzed decades ago. It is a reminder that a case can sit quiet for years and still move forward when science catches up.

A Family Finally Gets an Answer

Chief Beere spoke plainly about what the identification can and cannot do. "We recognize that no investigation can change what happened to Joanie," he said, as quoted by CBS News Bay Area. "We hope today's announcement will provide answers to her family and we continue to pursue justice 57 years later."

Her family released a statement of their own. "Thank you to every single individual who worked on this case, past and present, for caring enough to give Joanne her name and to give her family closure," the Burdick family said.

That word, closure, matters. For decades a family did not know where Joanie had gone, and investigators did not know who she was. Those two halves of the same story were finally joined.

The Search for Answers Continues

Police say the original investigation identified a man named Taylor Morris Teaford as a potential suspect after a witness identification. According to Forensic Magazine and local reporting, Teaford was formally charged with murder in 1972 in connection with the hotel killing, even though the victim had not yet been identified.

Teaford was already a fugitive at the time and was once on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. Reports say he was never arrested, and no court has ever ruled on the charge. Chief Beere has said investigators still do not know where he is or whether he is alive, and that new searches and technology will be used to try to find out.

Authorities have also linked him as a person of interest in two other unsolved 1969 deaths of women in the East Bay. Those cases also remain open.

How You Can Help

Cold cases are often solved because one person remembers one detail. If you have any information about the death of Joanie Burdick or about the case, Oakland police ask you to contact the Oakland Police Department Homicide Section at 510-238-3821 or the Homicide Tip Line at 510-238-7950.

Unsolved murders and missing young people are causes that matter deeply to me. Joanie was a child who needed help, and for 57 years she did not even have her name. Please share her story, keep her name in the conversation, and if you know something, make the call.