Director Greta Gerwig has cast Oscar-winner Meryl Streep to voice Aslan in an upcoming adaptation of C.S. Lewis's The Magician's Nephew, a decision that has provoked outrage among American evangelical commentators. The casting has reignited debate since first being announced in April 2025, with critics viewing a female voice for the character—widely interpreted as representing Christ—as disrespectful to Christianity. Gerwig selected Streep not to court controversy but because she needed an accomplished actor over 70 who could convey both wisdom and childlike wonder.

Conservative commentators, including radio host Jenna Ellis and preacher David Fairchild, have called the casting "profaning Christ with the divine feminine" and "creative vandalism". However, the objection has not gone unchallenged: Christian writer Mary Pezzulo has highlighted the irony that some evangelicals accept depicting Christ as a lion—a carnivorous animal—yet object to him being voiced by a woman. The film also features Daniel Craig and Emma Mackey, whilst Gerwig plans to reimagine Narnia through a rock opera aesthetic inspired by David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars.