Frequently Asked Questions
About the Movie
The film rights to The Mortal Instruments were optioned by Unique Features, the film production company set up by former founders and co-presidents of New Line Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne, who oversaw the production of the Lord of the Rings movies, back in 2009. They then teamed with Constantin Films to produce and film the actual movie, with Sony Screen Gems distributing and Harald Zwart directing. The film will be based on the first book and called The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.
The movie started filming August 20, 2012, in Toronto and the release date is August 23, 2013. Up to date set reports and photos of the cast can be found at https://www.facebook.com/TheMortalInstruments
Important things to know about movies:
t Constantin has been good about including me in the project, by which I mean they have been good about asking my opinion about things and listening to what I have to say. Most authors get no say whatesoever in the film adaptations of their movies. However, here are things I am not in charge of/have no control over/do not know about:
- How the film gets released
- Whether there will be auditions
- Who they will cast and when they will cast them
- Where they will shoot
- The soundtrack
- The screenplay
- The weather in Bulgaria.
I don't have control; I just have to trust that the filmmakers will do their absolute best to produce a film we'll all be proud of. Fingers crossed everyone!
August 23, 2013.
As the lovely Ally Carter, author of the Gallagher Girls series, says on her website: “I can’t get you in the Gallagher Girls movies. Cassie Clare can’t get you in the Mortal Instruments movies. Rick Riordan can’t get you in the Percy Jackson movies. And on and on. We just can’t.”
She is right.
I have the utmost respect for the craft of acting, but please, please believe me when I say that if there ever is going to be a movie of the Mortal Instruments, I am the absolutely last person on the planet who would have any say whatsoever in casting it. Really. The people who are involved with casting (producers, casting directors) don’t have to ask me who to cast and they don’t have to care whether I like the casting or not. They could make the entire movie a one-man showcase for the robot from Wall-E and there is absolutely nothing I could do about it. I could have the greatest idea ever for the casting and they wouldn’t do anything about that, either. The writer of the source material a movie is based on is far below the producer’s gardener’s poodle in getting any input about casting. So please don’t send me headshots and resumes — you’d be better of sending them to a talent agent, a casting director, or really, mailing them to the dolphins at Sea World. They have about as much input into casting a TMI movie as I do.
And lastly, I also can’t email you to notify you in the future if it turns out that there are going to be auditions or open casting calls. I’m just not organized enough to remember to email so many people, and besides, I am unlikely to have any special knowledge of casting calls, or to know about it before, say, the mainstream media does.
Just the first book. If it is successful, they hope to make each of the next books separately.
Lily Collins talks to MTV about auditioning with Jamie Campbell-Bower.
Up to date casting information is always available here:
http://www.TheMortalInstrumentsMovie.com
Lily Collins has been cast as Clary.
Jamie Campbell-Bower has been cast as Jace.
Robert Sheehan has been cast as Simon.
Kevin Zegers has been cast as Alec.
Jemima West has been cast as Isabelle.
Godfrey Gao has been cast as Magnus
Lena Headey has been cast as Jocelyn.
Aidan Turner has been cast as Luke
Jared Harris has been cast as Hodge.
Yes! You can join the Mortal Instruments movie Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/TheMortalInstruments
If you want fan-supplied info, you can always check the site http://www.tmisource.com/ which does a good job of keeping up to date on City of Bones movie developments.
First, perhaps reading this helpful post from Ashley over at Mundie Source will calm you:
http://mundiesource.net/wpd/2010/10/06/massive-filmmaking-post/
Okay, second: No, I don’t believe that movies “ruin books”. As I said above, the MI books are optioned by the guys at least party responsible for movies I consider to be some of the best book-to-film adaptations of all time (the Lord of the Rings films.) I do understand what it’s like to see a film based on a book you loved and feel like the book wasn’t treated right, but there are also wonderful book-to-film adaptations out there: Let the Right One In, The Shawshank Redemption, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Last Picture Show, Psycho, Lord of the Rings. The Princess Bride. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Watership Down. The Iron Giant. Hellboy. The Shining. Carrie. Blade Runner. A Clockwork Orange. The Maltese Falcon. LA Confidential. The Hours. Atonement. Brokeback Mountain. Trainspotting. The Sweet Hereafter. Brideshead Revisited. Goodfellas. The Silence of the Lambs. A Room with a View. Movies are not a lesser art form than books; they are a different art form than books. If you don’t risk having a bad movie made out of your book, you’ll never get a good movie made out of your book, either.
*** (It is also worth noting that this argument is academic anyway. I no longer own the rights to make films or TV shows out of my books, or have the authority to decide whether it happens. Screem Gems/Sony does. That’s what it means to sell your film/tv rights. The decision is theirs to make. It is not mine. Asking me to reconsider making a movie is like asking me to redecorate a house I sold to someone else.)****
The Infernal Devices has been optioned as a film project by the same people who optioned The Mortal Instruments, and is currently in the early stages of development. I'm looking forward to seeing a screenplay.
I understand the curiosity, but I am totally forbidden to talk about what the cast will look like on film, or anything having to do with sets, props, constumes, and weapons. Costumes includes contacts, accents, and hair. I am not deliberately witholding information, I promise, but everyone involved with the production has to sign paperwork promising not to reveal the production's secrets and keep everything a surprise!
About the Movie
