The Magic Faraway Tree Arrives in U.S. Cinemas With Two Sequels Already Greenlit
An Enid Blyton novel first published in 1943 lands on American cinema screens this weekend, and the studio behind it has already ordered two sequels. The Magic Faraway Tree, directed by Ben Gregor from a screenplay by Simon Farnaby, opens in the U.S. after a UK run in March that saw it outgross Pixar's Hoppers on British screens, according to Variety.
Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy star as Tim and Polly Thompson, parents who uproot the family to the English countryside. There, the Thompsons discover the Faraway Tree — the enchanted landmark at the centre of Blyton's book. Delilah Bennett-Cardy plays teenager Beth, and Phoenix Laroche plays her game-addicted brother Joe. Nicola Coughlan, Jessica Gunning and Nonso Anozie joined the cast in 2024, as Variety reported at the time.
The screenplay carries a notable pedigree. Simon Farnaby shares credit on the recent Paddington films and also wrote 2023's Wonka — a résumé that places him squarely in the tradition of British family entertainments where charm and chaos share the frame. Zac Nicholson served as director of photography on The Magic Faraway Tree, per Variety.
For Garfield, the production was demanding. He described the shoot as "a very challenging one" in a separate Variety piece published the same day as the film's review. No further detail on what made it tough was given.
The UK box-office result — beating a Pixar release on home turf — caught attention when it happened in March. Hoppers carried the full weight of Disney-Pixar's marketing machine; The Magic Faraway Tree, a British production built on an eight-decade-old property, outdrew it in that single market. It is the kind of hold that prompts a studio to greenlight not one but two follow-ups before the film has opened in its largest market.
Jessica Gunning is set to attend the Australian premiere of the film, which Variety Australia called one of the most anticipated releases of the year. That Australian coverage ran in March, when the UK opening had already made the case.
What gives the project its commercial confidence is the combination: a beloved literary property, a writer with a proven track record in family cinema, and stars whose names travel internationally. Whether that formula repeats in the U.S. — where Blyton is far less widely read than in Britain — is the question this weekend will answer.
Two sequels greenlit. A UK win over Pixar. A domestic release date now arrived. The chain of decisions behind this film — optioning a 1943 property, hiring a Paddington writer, casting Garfield and Foy, dating the UK release for March and the U.S. for late August — is nearly complete. Only the U.S. opening numbers remain.
