Netflix’s upcoming Narnia: The Magician’s Nephew, written and directed by Greta Gerwig, has cast British actor Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Frank the Cabby, a significant departure from the character as written by C.S. Lewis.

In the 1955 novel, Frank is a London cab driver accidentally transported to the newly created world of Narnia with his horse, Strawberry. Aslan later chooses Frank and his wife Helen to become Narnia’s first king and queen. Lewis describes Frank as a white English working man from early-20th-century London, with fair skin and a pale face. Holdbrook-Smith, a Black British actor known for roles in Paddington 2, Mary Poppins Returns, Wonka, and Doctor Strange, will portray the character in Gerwig’s film.

The casting change has drawn attention because it alters the physical description Lewis gave the ordinary working-class cabby who becomes King Frank through courage, kindness, and humility. The film is scheduled for theaters in February 2027 before streaming on Netflix in April.

The project is also facing major backlash for casting Meryl Streep as the voice of Aslan. In Lewis’s books, Aslan is consistently presented as male, the great lion and son of the Emperor-beyond-the-Sea. Making the central Christ-figure character female has intensified criticism that Gerwig’s adaptation is rewriting core elements of the source material rather than faithfully adapting it.

The film follows Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer as they travel between worlds, awaken Jadis, and witness Aslan create Narnia. Netflix has assembled a high-profile cast that also includes David McKenna as Digory, Beatrice Campbell as Polly, Emma Mackey as the White Witch, Carey Mulligan as Mabel Kirke, and Daniel Craig as Uncle Andrew.

The Magician’s Nephew is set to open in IMAX and theaters worldwide on Feb. 12, 2027, with special IMAX previews beginning Feb. 10, followed by a Netflix streaming release on April 2, 2027.