The Mark Gordon Company, The C.S. Lewis Company, Entertainment One And TriStar Pictures Join Forces On "The Chronicles Of Narnia"

CULVER CITY, Calif., Aug. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chronicles of Narnia will receive new life on screen as TriStar Pictures, the literary-focused label, has teamed with The Mark Gordon Company, The C.S. Lewis Company, and Entertainment One (eOne) to continue the Narnia story in theaters with The Silver Chair. The picture will be financed by TriStar, eOne and The Mark Gordon Company with Sony and eOne distributing the picture.

The Mark Gordon Company and The C.S. Lewis Company are jointly developing and producing the film, adapted by David Magee, the two-time Oscar®-nominated screenwriter of Life of Pi and Finding Neverland. Mark Gordon, C.S. Lewis' stepson Douglas Gresham, Vincent Sieber, and Melvin Adams serve as producers.

With the move, the franchise, which has taken in nearly $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office, receives a new creative team that will tackle the continuing story with a fresh approach to capture a broad global audience. 

A classic series of seven novels that have sold over 100 million copies worldwide, and published in more than 50 languages, C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia began with the publication of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe in 1950. Six more novels (including the prequel, The Magician's Nephew, and the sequels, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair and The Last Battle) followed over the next six years. The final title in the series, The Last Battle, was awarded the highest mark of excellence in children's literature, the prestigious Carnegie Award. 

"Developing this project with The C.S. Lewis Company has been immensely exciting and a real joy. We are so pleased to team up with our good friends at TriStar and our partners at eOne to introduce this new, magical chapter of the Narnia franchise to fans around the world, both old and new," said Gordon.

Commenting on the announcement, Minghella said, "Reading The Chronicles of Narnia was one of the formative experiences of my childhood, just as it has been for children around the world for generations.  So, to have the opportunity to bring new life to the Narnia films with a new creative team is a career highlight.  Our mission is to build TriStar Pictures as a home for filmmaker-driven literary and commercial movies, and this film represents a huge step forward for us.  We're thrilled to be working with Mark, Doug, Melvin, Vincent, and David as we adapt The Silver Chair."

"It's been both fun and exciting to work with Mark Gordon and David Magee to develop the next Narnian movie, and now it's a thrill to welcome Tristar to our Narnia family. I greatly look forward to plunging again into the joys and challenges of once more bringing Narnia to the screen, this time with the wonderful story of The Silver Chair," said Gresham.

Nicole Brown will oversee the project for TriStar with Minghella, with Sara Smith overseeing the project for The Mark Gordon Company. 

TriStar Pictures has made a strong commitment to commercial adaptations of literary projects, with upcoming films based on the acclaimed novel Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, from director Ang Lee; the bestseller The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah; Maestra, by L.S. Hilton, to be produced by Amy Pascal; and The Trap, by Melanie Raabe, to be adapted by Oscar® nominee Phyllis Nagy (Carol).

To keep updated with movie developments follow THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/TheChroniclesofNarnia and at www.narnia.com

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com.

ABOUT THE MARK GORDON COMPANY
The Mark Gordon Company, which partnered with Entertainment One (eOne) in 2015 to create an independent film and television studio, is helmed by Mark Gordon who has produced more than 100 motion picture and television projects. 

Projects from The Mark Gordon Company's film division include STEVE JOBS written by Academy Award winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin and directed by Academy Award winning director Danny Boyle, and the forthcoming films WAR DOGS, starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller, with Todd Phillips directing; MOLLY'S GAME starring Jessica Chastain and Idris Elba, with Aaron Sorkin writing and directing; ALL THE OLD KNIVES directed by Neil Burger;  MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS starring and directed by Kenneth Branagh; war drama SAND CASTLE directed by Fernando Coimbra, starring Nicholas Hoult and Henry Cavill; and THE NUTCRACKER AND THE FOUR REALMS with Lasse Hallstrom set to direct.  Past film credits include SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (which earned Gordon Academy Award and BAFTA nominations, as well as a Golden Globe for Best Picture), 2012, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, SPEED, SOURCE CODE, THE MESSENGER, THE PATRIOT, among others. As an executive producer and financier, Gordon's credits include TOMB RAIDER, WONDER BOYS, THE PAINTED VEIL, A SIMPLE PLAN and PRIMARY COLORS.

The company is currently in production on several established television series including "Ray Donovan" (Showtime), "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC) and "Criminal Minds" and franchise spin-off "Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders" (CBS), and "Quantico"(ABC); as well as upcoming series "Designated Survivor" starring Kiefer Sutherland and "Conviction" starring Hayley Atwell, both on ABC. Past television credits include "Private Practice" (ABC), "Army Wives" (Lifetime) and "Reaper" (CW).

ABOUT ENTERTAINMENT ONE
Entertainment One Ltd. (LSE:ETO) is a global independent studio that specializes in the development, acquisition, production, financing, distribution and sales of entertainment content. The Company's diversified expertise spans across film, television and music production and sales, family programming, merchandising and licensing, and digital content. Through its global reach and expansive scale, powered by deep local market knowledge, the Company delivers the best content to the world.

Entertainment One's robust network includes film and television studio The Mark Gordon Company; content creation venture Amblin Partners with Steven Spielberg, DreamWorks Studios, Participant Media, and Reliance Entertainment; leading feature film production and global sales company Sierra Pictures; unscripted television production companies Renegade 83, Paperny Entertainment and Force Four Entertainment; world-class music labels Dualtone Music Group and Last Gang; and award-winning digital agency Secret Location.

The Company's rights library is exploited across all media formats and includes more than 100,000 hours of film and television content and approximately 40,000 music tracks.

www.entertainmentone.com

ABOUT THE C.S. LEWIS COMPANY
The C.S. Lewis Company has for decades managed the rights to all C.S. Lewis' works, including THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA.

The Company strives to continue to have C.S. Lewis' works kept available to the public throughout the world, has relationships with more than 50 publishers worldwide, and is responsible for working with theater and film companies around the world developing and licensing projects based on the C.S. Lewis works.  

The C.S. Lewis Company was extensively and actively involved in the development and production of the film versions of the first three of The Narnian Chronicles, working to ensure that the movies remain true to Narnia, and are delighted to be developing and producing the fourth installment, THE SILVER CHAIR, with The Mark Gordon Company and TriStar Pictures.

To keep up to date with movie developments, follow THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/TheChroniclesofNarnia and at www.narnia.com 

SOURCE Sony Pictures Entertainment

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