The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is a 2010 American fantasy adventure film based on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, the third novel in C. S. Lewis's epic fantasy series The Chronicles of Narnia (and fifth in internal chronological order). It is the third installment in The Chronicles of Narnia film series, and the final film in the series to be produced by Walden Media. This is the only film in the series to be distributed by 20th Century Fox, as Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures chose not to distribute the film after Disney went into a budget dispute with Walden Media.
The film is set three Narnian years after the events of Prince Caspian. The two youngest Pevensie siblings, Edmund (Skandar Keynes) and Lucy (Georgie Henley), are transported back to Narnia along with their cousin Eustace Scrubb (Will Poulter). They join the new king of Narnia, Caspian (Ben Barnes), in his quest to rescue seven lost lords and to save Narnia from a corrupting evil that resides on a dark island. Each character is tested as they journey to the home of the great lion Aslan (Liam Neeson) at the far end of the world.
Development on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader began in 2007, while Prince Caspian was still in production. Filming was supposed to take place in Malta, the Czech Republic, and Iceland in 2008 with Michael Apted as the director, for a planned release in 2009, but production was halted after a budgetary dispute between Walden Media and Walt Disney Pictures concerning Prince Caspian's performance at the box office, resulting in Disney departing the production and being replaced by 20th Century Fox. Filming later took place in Australia and New Zealand in 2009 and was converted into 3D in 2010. It was released in traditional 2D, RealD 3D, and Digital 3D, and a limited release in 4D.
The film premiered on November 30, 2010, at a Royal Film Performance in London and was released worldwide on December 10, 2010. It was commercially successful but met with mixed reviews, praising the performances and visual effects but criticizing the script and pace. The film received moderate success in North America with a gross of $104 million, which was lower than its predecessors. However, it fared better than Prince Caspian internationally with $310 million. The film was the 12th-highest-grossing film of 2010 worldwide with nearly $415 million and received a nomination at the 68th Golden Globe Awards for Best Original Song. It then became 20th Century Fox's highest-grossing film in 2010. The Magician's Nephew was to be the fourth entry to the series, but in Autumn 2011 Walden Media's contract with the C. S. Lewis estate expired, which placed the possibility of another film on indefinite hold. However, on October 1, 2013, The C. S. Lewis Company announced that they have entered into an agreement with The Mark Gordon Company to jointly develop and produce the fourth film, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Silver Chair.
Plot[]
Three Narnian years after the events of Prince Caspian, Lucy and Edmund Pevensie are staying with their irritating cousin Eustace Scrubb while their older siblings Peter and Susan are in America as World War II rages on. To his chagrin, Edmund is too young to enlist in His Majesty's Armed Forces. A painting of a ship on the ocean transports Lucy, Edmund, and Eustace into an ocean in Narnia. They are rescued by the Dawn Treader. Caspian invites them on a voyage to rescue the seven Lords of Narnia whom his uncle Miraz exiled. In the Lone Islands Caspian and Edmund are imprisoned, and Lucy and Eustace are sold as slaves. Caspian meets one of the lost lords, who reveals that unsold slaves are sacrificed to a green mist. The crew of the Dawn Treader rescues Caspian and the others. Caspian outlaws the slave trade and appoints the lord governor. The lord gives Caspian his sword, one of the seven given to the lords by Aslan. On another island, Lucy is abducted by invisible Dufflepuds who force her to enter the manor of the magician Coriakin to find a visibility spell. Coriakin encourages the crew to defeat the mist by laying the lords' swords at Aslan's Table on Ramandu's island but warns they will be tested. Envious of Susan, Lucy recites a beauty incantation she finds and enters a dream in which she is Susan and neither Lucy nor Narnia exists. Aslan chides Lucy for her self-doubt, explaining that her siblings know of Narnia only because of her. At a third island, another sword is recovered from a pool that turns anything it touches into gold. Wandering alone, Eustace finds a cursed treasure and steals some of it. Edmund and Caspian search for Eustace and discover the remains of another of the lords, recovering his sword. They encounter a dragon, which turns out to be Eustace transformed by the treasure's curse. Reepicheep befriends Eustace, who has a change of heart and becomes useful to the crew.
The crew arrives at Aslan's Table to find three lost lords in an enchanted sleep. As they place the swords on the table, they realize one is missing. A star descends from the sky and transforms into Ramandu's daughter Lilliandil. She guides them to the Dark Island, the lair of the mist, where they discover the last lord. The mist uses Edmund's fear to create a sea serpent that attacks the ship. Eustace fights the serpent, but the panicked lord wounds him with the last sword, causing him to fly away. He encounters Aslan, who transforms him back into a boy for his self-sacrifice and sends him to Ramandu's island with the last sword. As the crew fights the serpent, the mist distracts Edmund by appearing as Jadis, the White Witch. Eustace reaches the table, but the mist tries to stop him from putting the sword on the table with the others. He overcomes the mist, allowing the swords to unleash their magic and bestow Edmund, using Peter's sword, with the power to slay the sea serpent, the death of which awakens the three lords. The mist of the Dark Island is destroyed when they liberate the sacrificed slaves. Eustace rejoins the others, and they sail to a mysterious shore before a massive wave. Aslan appears, telling them that his country lies beyond, although if they go there, they can never return. Caspian's duty as king dissuades him from following his wish to enter Aslan's country, but Reepicheep is determined to enter. Aslan blesses him and he bids farewell to the others. Aslan tells Lucy and Edmund that, like Peter and Susan, they are now too old to return to Narnia. He tells Eustace that he may return one day and encourages them to know him in their world by another name. He opens a portal for them to return back to the present world. The three are transported back into the bedroom, Eustace hears his mother announcing, that Jill Pole has come to visit him. As they leave the bedroom, they look sadly back at the painting and see the ship voyaging through the waves disappear before Lucy closes the door.
Cast[]
Pevensies and Scrubbs[]
- Skandar Keynes as Edmund Pevensie: The third oldest of the Pevensie children and a King of Narnia. He is more mature after the events of Prince Caspian, and he takes good care of his younger sister and cousin while they embark on a voyage to defeat the enemy. On his last journey, his hunger for more power against Caspian and the White Witch is being tested.
- Georgie Henley as Lucy Pevensie: The youngest of the Pevensie children. A Queen of Narnia who first discovered the world of Narnia during the events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, she comes back to Narnia to save it from a threatening darkness while her faith is being tested along the way. Henley feels that Lucy's desire to be more beautiful than her sister Susan represents the dilemma of modern teenage girls on beauty and image.
- Will Poulter as Eustace Scrubb: The Pevensie children's irritating cousin who gets transported to Narnia for the first time. At first, he annoys everyone with his arrogance and greed, but he dramatically changes after he is cursed for his sins and becomes a dragon. With the support of his cousins and the warrior mouse Reepicheep, Eustace becomes a more generous and cooperative soul. He uses his dragon form to good advantage first when the Dawn Treader is caught in magically induced doldrums by towing the ship and later attacking the sea serpent, earning the crew's respect and being restored by Aslan for his self-sacrifice.
Dawn Treader crew[]
- Ben Barnes as King Caspian X: Caspian was raised as a Telmarine prince and was helped by the Pevensie children to ascend to the throne as the new King of Narnia during the events of Prince Caspian. As the King of Narnia, he has grown into a wise young man and embarks on a voyage to seek the seven lost lords of Narnia and defeat an enemy who threatens to corrupt it. Along the way, his faith is tested when he is tempted by the green mist of Dark Island, which appears to him as his greatest fear—his father feeling nothing but disappointment in him. Also on the voyage, Caspian finds a new love interest when he meets Lilliandil on Ramandu's Island and is instantly smitten with her.
- Simon Pegg as the voice of Reepicheep: Reepicheep is the valiant swashbuckling mouse who aided Caspian and the Pevensie children during the events of Prince Caspian. He joins Caspian in the voyage on the Dawn Treader because he is aware that his time is at an end; he must seek the unseen Aslan's Country as his last voyage. Pegg replaced Eddie Izzardbecause director Michael Apted thought that his voice is more mature and serious compared to Izzard's. Bill Nighy was originally announced as Izzard's replacement, but the studio thought his voice sounded too old for the role and decided to go in a different direction.
- Gary Sweet as Lord Drinian: The captain of the Dawn Treader and Caspian's best friend. He is a very cautious and protective captain and is somewhat superstitious about stories of sea serpents.
- Shane Rangi as Tavros the Minotaur: Rangi also played Asterius the Minotaur in Prince Caspian and General Otmin in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe.
- Morgan Evans as Randy the Faun
- Steven Rooke as Nausus the Faun
- Tony Nixon as 1st Mate (Rynelf)
Narnians[]
- Liam Neeson as the voice of Aslan: Aslan is a great lion and the highest of all the Kings of Narnia. He tests everyone's faith as they embark on a voyage to defeat evil and seek his country at the ends of the world. He later guides Reepicheep to his own country.
- Laura Brent as Lilliandil: Lilliandil is the daughter of the retired star Ramandu, and the Blue Star that shines over Ramandu's Island; the crew on the Dawn Treader follow her position in the sky to reach the island. She aids the crew in destroying the evil of Dark Island and is also Caspian's love interest. The name of Ramandu's Daughter is not mentioned in the novel, so producer Douglas Gresham coined the name "Lilliandil".
- Bille Brown as Coriakin: A wizard and a retired star who guides the Dufflepuds to wisdom. He reveals to the crew the evil that threatens to corrupt Narnia and warns them that each one of them will be tested in their faith by Aslan.
- Terry Norris as Lord Bern: One of the Lost Lords of Narnia who settled on the Lone Islands. He later succeeds as its new Governor.
- Bruce Spence as Lord Rhoop: One of the Lost Lords of Narnia. He gets trapped on the Dark Island.
- Arabella Morton as Gael: A Lone Islander whose mother was sacrificed to the green mist. She later sneaks on board the Dawn Treader to follow her father (Rhince, played by Arthur Angel), who also joins the Dawn Treader crew to look for his wife. She is good friends with Lucy and sees her as her heroine, as Lucy acts much like a big sister to her.
- Nathaniel Parker as Caspian IX: The late father of Caspian X, who was murdered by his brother Miraz shortly after his son's birth. The green mist of Dark Island appears to Caspian as his father, telling him that he is ashamed to call him his son.
- David Vallon as Governor Gumpas
- Michael Foster as Gumpas's money collector
- Colin Moody as Pug, the leader of a gang of slavers in Narrowhaven of the Lone Islands.
- Roy Billing as Chief Dufflepud
Cameos[]
- William Moseley as Peter Pevensie: Peter is the oldest of the Pevensie children, who was crowned as the High King of Narnia during the events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. He was too old to experience the wonders of Narnia after the events of Prince Caspian. He, along with Susan, went to America with their parents.
- Anna Popplewell as Susan Pevensie: Susan is the second oldest of the Pevensie children and a Queen of Narnia. She, like her older brother Peter, was too old to visit Narnia a third time. She and Peter went to America with their parents, leaving their younger siblings to spend a not-so-fun holiday with their cousin Eustace.
- Tilda Swinton as Jadis, the White Witch: The White Witch is a former queen of Charn and a witch who ruled Narnia after the events of The Magician's Nephew and during the events of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Edmund's memories of her are revived by the mist to torment him in his test to defeat temptation.
- Douglas Gresham as a slave buyer: Douglas Gresham is the stepson of C. S. Lewis and has made cameo appearances in all three Narnia films, all of which he produced.