Dead Tree Given New Life on Narnia Film Set

Greta Gerwig’s upcoming adaptation of The Magician’s Nephew may just have found its most unlikely of big-screen stars yet… a dead tree.

According to a report by Buckinghamshire-based local newspaper The Bucks Herald, the long-deceased maple tree was acquired by the Narnia production team last September from Startop Farm near Marsworth on the border of Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire in England.

Known locally for its twisted, lightning-scarred silhouette, the tree was carefully dismantled by contractors, with some branches cut and numbered so it could be reconstructed exactly on set.

The Bucks Herald

The dead maple tree was apparently spotted by a member of the production team at the Marsworth Steam Rally back in June, before being taken away for use on the Narnia film set a few months later.

According to farm owner Josie Kempster the tree will star as “one of two apple trees in the wood”, although the Bucks Herald’s paraphrasing and editorializing make it unclear as to whether they are referring to The Wood Between The Worlds or to the Tree of Protection and its associated real-world twin that is planted by Digory at the end of the book.

The image above shows the tree being carefully dismantled and raised onto a flatbed truck by staff from Greens Team Ltd; a company previously linked to The Magician’s Nephew that specializes in plant-based set dressings for film and TV productions.

Greens Team Ltd recently posted a video of a very similar looking dead tree on their Instagram account which shows how they transform the branches of dead trees to create realistic looking “live” trees; in this case for an Alice in Wonderland themed display at the recent Pinewood Studios Futures Festival.

Thanks to Kahina on our Discord server for the heads-up!