# Children of Blood and Bone (film)
**Children of Blood and Bone** is an upcoming American action-adventure fantasy film directed by [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://www.edgepedia.org/gina-prince-bythewood), adapted from Tomi Adeyemi's 2018 young adult novel of the same name and scheduled for theatrical release by [Paramount Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/paramount-pictures) on January 15, 2027[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone). The story unfolds in the epic fantasy realm of Orïsha, where a young woman sets out to recover the magic that was forcibly taken from her people; joining forces with the king's daughter and son, she and her brother work to overthrow his cruel reign.[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone) The film carries an all-Black ensemble cast led by [Thuso Mbedu](https://www.edgepedia.org/thuso-mbedu), Damson Idris, and Amandla Stenberg[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone). In July 2026, weeks before the trailer appeared, Adeyemi publicly distanced herself from the finished film[2](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/jul/06/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director and writers | Gina Prince-Bythewood, from a screenplay she co-wrote with Tomi Adeyemi[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone) • [3](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/tomi-adeyemi-addresses-blood-and-bone-film/) |
| Release date | January 15, 2027, in theaters, Dolby Cinema, premium large formats, and IMAX[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone) • [4](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-trailer-insane-cast-magical-woman-king-follow-up) |
| Source novel | First book of Adeyemi's Legacy of Orïsha trilogy, published 2018; debuted No. 1 on the New York Times Young Adult bestsellers list and won the 2019 Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book[5](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/behind-making-children-of-blood-and-bone-tomi-adeyemi) |
| Lead cast | Thuso Mbedu, Damson Idris, Amandla Stenberg, Tosin Cole, with Cynthia Erivo, Lashana Lynch, Zackary Momoh, Richard Mofe-Damijo, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Regina King, Idris Elba, and Viola Davis[1](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone) |
| Principal photography | February to June 1, 2025; 74 shooting days across two countries and two islands[6](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-movie/) |
| Music | Tems as executive music producer; Burna Boy as executive music consultant[4](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-trailer-insane-cast-magical-woman-king-follow-up) |
## Source novel and setting
The film adapts the first book of Adeyemi's Legacy of Orïsha trilogy, a West African-inspired fantasy whose vocabulary, including the name of its kingdom, its word for power, and the names of several of its gods, draws on the [Yoruba language](https://www.edgepedia.org/yoruba-language) and Yoruba tradition[7](https://africanbelief.com/beliefs/symbols-and-divination/children-of-blood-and-bone-the-film-adaptation-announcement). Adeyemi has said the anger in the book came from watching [Black people](https://www.edgepedia.org/black-people) killed by police and finding no fantasy that put Black faces at the center[7](https://africanbelief.com/beliefs/symbols-and-divination/children-of-blood-and-bone-the-film-adaptation-announcement). In the novel, teenager Zélie Adebola is determined to bring magic back to her oppressed people, teaming up with a rogue princess to fight the monarchy, which wiped out magic years before to gain more power[8](https://time.com/5743069/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-virtue-and-vengeance/).
The novel debuted at number one on the New York Times Young Adult bestsellers list on its 2018 release, and Adeyemi was named to Forbes's 30 Under 30 list[2](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/jul/06/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation). It won the 2019 Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book[5](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/behind-making-children-of-blood-and-bone-tomi-adeyemi). The film deal itself was one of the largest for a young adult debut novel in publishing history; Adeyemi has called it the biggest YA book deal in history, not just for a female or Black author[9](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/sep/27/tomi-adeyemi-on-the-film-of-her-hit-novel-children-of-blood-and-bone-i-dont-plan-to-watch-it).
## Development
Film rights were secured unusually early. Fox 2000 acquired them in a reported seven-figure deal ahead of the novel's publication, and the studio was already planning an adaptation in 2017 with [Rick Famuyiwa](https://www.edgepedia.org/rick-famuyiwa), director of *[Dope](https://www.edgepedia.org/dope-2015-film)*, attached to direct and David Magee, writer of *Mary Poppins Returns*, writing the script[7](https://africanbelief.com/beliefs/symbols-and-divination/children-of-blood-and-bone-the-film-adaptation-announcement) • [10](https://time.com/4803661/game-of-thrones-books-fantasy-series/). In 2019 Adeyemi described the project as being with Disney/Fox and [Lucasfilm](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucasfilm), with the *This Is Us* writer Kay Oyegun signed on to write the script[8](https://time.com/5743069/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-virtue-and-vengeance/).
[The Walt Disney Company](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-walt-disney-company)'s acquisition of 21st Century Fox then led the rights to expire, and Paramount landed them[6](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-movie/). Paramount quickly set Prince-Bythewood, director of *The Woman King*, as director and began filling out the cast[11](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-cinemacon-footage-description/). The finished screenplay is credited to Prince-Bythewood and Adeyemi together[3](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/tomi-adeyemi-addresses-blood-and-bone-film/).
## Production and promotion
Filming ran through the first half of 2025. Adeyemi marked the start on Instagram in February with a photo of a set chair captioned "And...action🎬," and Prince-Bythewood announced the wrap on June 1, 2025, with a photo of a clapper board: "74 days. Two countries and two islands. A passionate and dedicated crew. And an extraordinary cast who gave EVERYTHING."[6](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-movie/)
The first footage was screened at CinemaCon in Las Vegas on April 16, 2026, ahead of the January 2027 release[11](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-cinemacon-footage-description/). The official trailer, featuring Mbedu, Idris, and Stenberg, was published on July 28, 2026[12](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnWvg90lQt8). Nigerian artists anchor the music: Tems serves as executive music producer for the soundtrack and [Burna Boy](https://www.edgepedia.org/burna-boy) as the film's executive music consultant[4](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-trailer-insane-cast-magical-woman-king-follow-up). [Box Office Mojo](https://www.edgepedia.org/box-office-mojo) lists an opening in South Korea on January 28, 2027[13](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr811946757/).
## The author's separation from the film
On July 6, 2026, Adeyemi publicly distanced herself from the adaptation, citing treatment she described as being attacked behind the scenes[2](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/jul/06/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation). In a TikTok post she said she would not watch the film and was severing ties with it, telling fans she did not mind anyone going to see it[14](https://www.zikoko.com/pop/children-of-blood-and-bone-adaptation-drama/). [The Daily Beast](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-daily-beast) reported that she officially distanced herself from the movie due to behind-the-scenes drama[15](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tomi-adeyami-distances-herself-from-children-of-blood-and-bone-film/). Vanity Fair reported that, despite outward positivity, Adeyemi had privately told people involved with the film that she would be distancing herself from the adaptation[5](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/behind-making-children-of-blood-and-bone-tomi-adeyemi). In a September 2026 interview she said, "I don't plan to watch it," and described the adaptation as a source of profound distress after twelve years spent inside the world of the book and its film[9](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/sep/27/tomi-adeyemi-on-the-film-of-her-hit-novel-children-of-blood-and-bone-i-dont-plan-to-watch-it).
## Representation and the use of Yoruba religion
Vanity Fair frames the film as a significant representational milestone: winning studio backing for a lavish fantasy production is already difficult in Hollywood, and it is nearly unheard of for such a production to tell a Black story with an entirely Black ensemble.[5](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/behind-making-children-of-blood-and-bone-tomi-adeyemi) Commentary around the adaptation has also raised questions of authenticity, including casting choices in an Afrocentric story and what the film really represents for its audiences[16](https://afrocritik.com/who-and-what-does-the-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation-really-represent/).
A separate line of discussion concerns the source material's relationship to a living religion. The kingdom, magic system, clans, and plot of the novel are invented, but the deity names are borrowed from [Yoruba religion](https://www.edgepedia.org/yoruba-religion), a faith with priests, initiates, festivals, and congregations today in Nigeria, Benin, Brazil, Cuba, Trinidad, and the United States. Commentators note that nothing in the film should be taken as a description of what anyone believes or does; what is real is the direction the names point[17](https://africanbelief.com/articles/children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation-and-the-645a4c).
## References
1. [Children of Blood and Bone | Paramount Pictures](https://www.paramountpictures.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone)
2. ['Attacked behind the scenes': Children of Blood & Bone author Tomi Adeyemi distances herself from film adaptation, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/jul/06/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation)
3. [Tomi Adeyemi Addresses 'Blood and Bone' Film, Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/news-and-features/articles/tomi-adeyemi-addresses-blood-and-bone-film/)
4. [Children of Blood and Bone Trailer Shows Insane Cast In Director's Magical Woman King Follow Up, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-trailer-insane-cast-magical-woman-king-follow-up)
5. [A Hit Author's Film Adaptation Went Horribly Wrong. What Happened on the Set of 'Children of Blood and Bone'?, Vanity Fair](https://www.vanityfair.com/story/behind-making-children-of-blood-and-bone-tomi-adeyemi)
6. ['Children of Blood and Bone' Movie: Everything We Know About the Cast and Release Date, Marie Claire](https://www.marieclaire.com/culture/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-movie/)
7. [Children of Blood and Bone: The Film Adaptation Announcement, African Belief](https://africanbelief.com/beliefs/symbols-and-divination/children-of-blood-and-bone-the-film-adaptation-announcement)
8. ['What If Harry Potter Had Been Black?' Tomi Adeyemi on Representation and Fostering Empathy Through Her Epic Fantasy Series, TIME](https://time.com/5743069/tomi-adeyemi-children-of-virtue-and-vengeance/)
9. [Tomi Adeyemi on the film of her hit novel Children of Blood and Bone: 'I don't plan to watch it', The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/sep/27/tomi-adeyemi-on-the-film-of-her-hit-novel-children-of-blood-and-bone-i-dont-plan-to-watch-it)
10. [6 Fantasy Series That Could Become the Next Game of Thrones, TIME](https://time.com/4803661/game-of-thrones-books-fantasy-series/)
11. [Children of Blood and Bone Shares First Footage at CinemaCon, TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/creative-content/movies/children-of-blood-and-bone-cinemacon-footage-description/)
12. [Children of Blood and Bone | Official Trailer (2027), YouTube, Paramount Pictures](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnWvg90lQt8)
13. [Children of Blood and Bone, Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/releasegroup/gr811946757/)
14. [Children of Blood and Bone: A Timeline of The Adaptation Drama, Zikoko](https://www.zikoko.com/pop/children-of-blood-and-bone-adaptation-drama/)
15. [Tomi Adeyami Distances Herself From 'Children of Blood and Bone' Film, The Daily Beast](https://www.thedailybeast.com/tomi-adeyami-distances-herself-from-children-of-blood-and-bone-film/)
16. [Who and What Does the 'Children of Blood and Bone' Film Adaptation Really Represent?, Afrocritik](https://afrocritik.com/who-and-what-does-the-children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation-really-represent/)
17. [Children of Blood and Bone: Film Adaptation and the Real Orisha, African Belief](https://africanbelief.com/articles/children-of-blood-and-bone-film-adaptation-and-the-645a4c)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Science fiction and fantasy films (individual works) › Science fiction and fantasy films of the 2020s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license