How to Get Cast in Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew
Greta Gerwig’s Narnia is one of the biggest bets Netflix has ever placed on a film — a theatrical-first fantasy epic opening February 12, 2027 (IMAX previews February 10), then streaming April 2, 2027. The person who filled its call sheet is Nina Gold, one of the most decorated casting directors in the business — and the story of how she found this film’s two young leads is the single most useful thing a young actor (or their parent) can study this year.
The honest headline up front: the film shot at Shepperton Studios from August through December 2025 and is now in post-production, so the principal cast is locked. But this guide isn’t a dead end. Between ADR and voice work, specialty lanes, and — most importantly — the open-search playbook Gold runs for young performers, there’s real, actionable intelligence here for this film’s remaining opportunities and every big kid-led production that follows.
The Film at a Glance
The Magician’s Nephew is the first book in C.S. Lewis’s Narnia chronology — the origin story of Narnia itself, as two children, Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer, stumble through magical worlds and witness Narnia’s creation, the rise of the White Witch, and the birth of Aslan’s kingdom. Gerwig (Barbie, Little Women, Lady Bird) directs — a signal this Narnia carries real emotional and literary weight behind the spectacle.
The cast is a statement of intent — heavyweight adults around two discovered kids:
- David McKenna as Digory Kirke and Beatrice Campbell as Polly Plummer — both found through a dedicated kid casting search.
- Emma Mackey as Jadis, the White Witch; Daniel Craig as Uncle Andrew.
- Adult ensemble: Carey Mulligan, Ciarán Hinds, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough, Susan Wokoma — with Meryl Streep voicing Aslan.
Key production facts:
- Status: Filmed at Shepperton Studios, UK, August–December 2025; in post-production now.
- Release: Theatrical February 12, 2027 (IMAX previews from February 10); Netflix streaming from April 2, 2027. That theatrical-first window is unusual for Netflix and tells you the scale.
- Background scale: Fantasy epics are voracious employers of background performers — Victorian London street scenes (the book opens in Edwardian London), Narnian crowds, coronation and ceremony scenes — all staffed through UK extras agencies during the shoot.
The Casting Director: Nina Gold
Nina Gold is the credited casting director — “Casting by: Nina Gold,” per Netflix’s own billing, corroborated across multiple sources including The Playlist’s below-the-line coverage (which bills her as “Oscar-nominated casting director Nina Gold”) and Spotlight’s UK filming listings (“Casting by Nina Gold, CDG”). One credit note: a few listings (Moviefone, one Spotlight edition) also name Francine Maisler alongside Gold. Maisler is a major casting director in her own right, but Netflix’s own materials credit Gold — Gold is the lead credit, and Maisler belongs in the secondary column, not the headline.
Framing Gold correctly for this film means focusing on what she does better than almost anyone: finding child actors. The two leads of this film were found through a kid casting search — not pulled from a stack of established young stars. That’s the pattern: when Gold runs a search for young leads, unknown kids genuinely book the roles.
Her broader credits — Game of Thrones, the Star Wars sequel trilogy, and a deep bench of prestige film and television — give her enormous authority in exactly the genres this film sits in. But for an actor reading this guide, the credit that matters most isn’t the franchise work. It’s the demonstrated, repeated willingness to put an unknown child at the center of a massive production.
Why this matters: most casting directors say they run open searches; Gold actually staffs the leads of huge productions from them. If you’re a young performer — or the parent of one — her searches are among the highest-value open calls in the industry, and the Magician’s Nephew search tells you exactly what the next one looks like.
What Roles They Cast
A Gerwig-directed Narnia epic casts in layers. Here’s how each one worked — and which still have air in them.
The kid leads. Locked — McKenna and Campbell are set as Digory and Polly. But study how they were found: a dedicated kid casting search, run wide, that landed on two young performers rather than established child stars. This is the single most important data point in this guide for young actors. The search happened; unknowns booked it; the next one will work the same way.
The adult principals. Locked. Mackey, Craig, Mulligan, Hinds, Streep (voice), Holdbrook-Smith, Gough, Wokoma — cast through Gold’s office with top agencies before the August 2025 start. Never open-call roles.
Day players and co-stars. Largely locked for principal photography, but watch this tier for additional photography. A February 2027 theatrical release with IMAX previews means a tight but real post schedule — if Gerwig needs inserts or new coverage, day players get cast fast, going to performers already on file with Gold’s office and UK casting agencies.
Creature, stunt, and specialty performers. Fantasy epics live on specialty tracks: creature performers, puppeteers, stunt-trained fighters, horse riders, wire-work artists. Narnia’s magical creatures and battle-scale sequences meant a deep bench of physical specialists — a small-pool, high-demand lane where casting often continues into post-production.
Voice and ADR. Genuinely live right now. With the film in post through early 2027, crowd walla, creature vocalizations, and background dialogue get cast months after cameras stop — often through specialized voice agencies rather than the main casting office. Streep voices Aslan, but the production needs dozens of other voices.
Background performers and extras. The highest-volume tier during the shoot — staffed through UK extras agencies, now closed for this film since principal photography is done. But the agencies that staffed it are the same ones that will staff the next Narnia installment and every other UK fantasy production.
How to Apply: Step by Step
Step 1: Be honest about where this film is — and what “open” means
Principal photography wrapped in December 2025. Nobody is auditioning for Digory, Polly, or Jadis. Your realistic targets: (1) voice/ADR and specialty work during post-production, (2) day-player spots if additional photography is scheduled, and (3) positioning for Gold’s next kid-lead search. Different targets, different moves — decide before you act.
Step 2: Build or polish your Project Casting profile
Project Casting is where casting notices for background, day-player, voice, and specialty roles land. For a UK-shot fantasy production in post, your profile should be: location-accurate (the Shepperton shoot hired UK-based performers; any additional photography will too), loaded with current headshots including character and period-look shots (Victorian/Edwardian styling reads directly to this film’s world), and explicit about special skills — horse riding, stage combat, puppetry, creature-suit experience, wire work, voiceover, dialects. For young performers, keep age, height, and playing-age range current: kid casting moves on exact physical specs. Check new notices daily; post-production voice casting and pickup calls surface with little warning.
Step 3: For young performers — study the McKenna/Campbell playbook
Two unknown kids booked the leads of a Netflix tentpole through a search. What does that teach you about the next one? Naturalism over polish: Gerwig directs toward truthful, unmannered performances, and Gold’s kid searches reward the same — over-coached pageant polish is not what this office wants. Reading ability matters: this is a literary adaptation; young performers who handle real text have an edge. Be findable: open searches run through casting databases, young-performer agencies, and direct submissions. If you’re not in the databases Gold’s office pulls from, the search can’t find you.
Step 4: Get your materials fantasy-ready
Headshots: for kid and teen performers, current and natural — casting needs the real child, not a styled version. Update every six months; kids change fast, and an outdated headshot is an instant pass. Adults: character-forward, with at least one period-capable look. Reel: 60–90 seconds leading with grounded, emotional, dialogue-driven work. For young performers, school plays and short films count — Gold’s office watches for presence and truthfulness, not production value. Voice reel (if applicable): character voices, accents, creature vocal work — worth more than a standard acting reel if you’re targeting the ADR lane.
Step 5: Understand agent vs. self-submit
The adult principals went through agents to Gold’s office — standard at this scale. But the kid leads came through a genuinely open search, and background, specialty, and voice lanes all run through channels that take direct registration: UK extras agencies, stunt and creature coordinators’ rosters, voice agencies. Parents of young performers: you don’t need a top-tier agent to get your child seen in an open search — you need current materials in the right databases and the discipline to submit the moment a search is announced.
Step 6: Register with the UK agencies that staff this world
The extras agencies, young-performer agencies, and voice agencies that worked on this production are the same ones staffing the next Narnia film and every comparable UK fantasy shoot. Registration is the unglamorous move that makes you visible: photos, measurements, skills, availability. For young performers especially, being registered with reputable UK young-performer agencies before a search is announced is the difference between submitting on day one and hearing about it on day thirty.
Realistic Tips for This Specific Film
The kid-search lesson is the whole game. A Netflix tentpole put two searched-and-found kids at its center. When the next big young-lead search is announced — Narnia sequel, fantasy series, family epic — the winners will be the young performers already registered, with current materials, submitting immediately. Preparation beats scrambling every time.
Don’t sleep on the voice lane. Post-production on a fantasy epic is a voice-casting machine: crowd scenes, creatures, background dialogue — and one of the few lanes where geography matters less, since voice work can sometimes be recorded remotely.
Period looks are a casting shortcut. The film’s London sequences are Edwardian. Performers who can believably wear the period — and whose headshots prove it — sort into a smaller pool for this and every other period fantasy shooting in the UK.
Specialty training shrinks your competition. Thousands of kids can submit for a lead; dozens can ride, fence, or puppeteer. One real physical skill — horse riding, stage combat, gymnastics — is a genuine differentiator in fantasy casting.
Watch the film like a casting director. When it releases theatrically on February 12, 2027, study the London scenes and the Narnian crowds. The faces Gold casts — specific, interesting, unglamorous-real — are the faces she’ll cast next time.
For parents: legitimate kid casting searches never charge the performer. Any “Narnia casting” asking for upfront fees is a scam — report it and move on.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the casting director for Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew?
Nina Gold — “Casting by: Nina Gold,” per Netflix’s own billing, corroborated by trade and industry listings. Some listings also name Francine Maisler, but Gold is the lead credit on Netflix’s materials.
When does Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew come out?
Theatrically February 12, 2027 (IMAX previews from February 10), then streaming on Netflix from April 2, 2027.
Who plays Digory and Polly?
David McKenna plays Digory Kirke and Beatrice Campbell plays Polly Plummer — both young performers found through a dedicated kid casting search.
Is Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew still filming?
No. It filmed at Shepperton Studios from August through December 2025 and is now in post-production.
Can my child still audition for the Narnia movie?
The principal roles, including the kid leads, are locked. But the way McKenna and Campbell were found — through an open kid casting search — is exactly how the next big young-lead search will work. Get current materials into the right databases now.
Who else is in the cast?
Emma Mackey as Jadis (the White Witch), Daniel Craig as Uncle Andrew, Carey Mulligan, Ciarán Hinds, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Denise Gough, Susan Wokoma — with Meryl Streep voicing Aslan. Greta Gerwig directs.
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The leads are cast, but the next search is always coming — today’s young-performer and voice casting calls and how to keep a young performer’s profile casting-ready.
