The Mortal Instruments Trilogy Put On Hiatus Following City of Bones‘ Financial Failure

The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes is already in production, but fans of the series might have to wait a bit longer than they initially anticipated to see it on the big screen. Possibly forever.

City of Bones, based on the first book in Cassandra Clare‘s Mortal Instruments trilogy, cost $60 million to make and has only earned $37 million (that’s worldwide, not domestic) since it came out three weeks ago. I can’t say I’m surprised: All the standard official trailers and promo clips came along prior to its release, but I never really heard any buzz about it other than from a few people I follow on Tumblr who like the books. Given the financial failure of the first film, production company Constantin Film has decided to delay the second to “analyze the results to date and reposition the franchise in order to maximize results for future installments.”

Here’s what Constantin Film’s Martin Moszkowicz had to say:

“Pushing back the start of production of City of Ashes was a decision we did not take lightly. But after speaking with all of our partners on the creative and distribution side, it was clear that it will be beneficial to have more time to reposition the film in the current marketplace. The Mortal Instruments series has an incredibly loyal and ardent fan base and is a best-selling book series. While taking Cassandra Claire’s [sic] vision to the screen we want to make sure to draw on the full potential of the franchise.”

They haven’t said they’re cancelling it, and they have at least one new actress—Sigourney Weaver—already attached. So the film could very well still see the light of day. After all, the Percy Jackson franchise went on a break after its first movie, and this summer’s Sea of Monsters still happened.

But something tells me we’re looking at a His Dark Materials situation instead. Like The Golden Compass, City of Bones was panned by critics and didn’t make a whole lot of dough, even though The Golden Compass had better reviews and the dubious benefit (yes, benefit) of a religious controversy to raise its profile. Simply put, no one outside The Mortal Instruments fandom really seems to care about the movies, and their enthusiasm and word-of-mouth alone wasn’t enough to push City of Bones over into being a mainstream success.

As the franchise loses momentum I see it fading quietly into the background, leaving only sad fangirls in its wake. But hey. Buck up, The Mortal Instruments fandom. I hope for your sake that I’m wrong.

(via: The Guardian)

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