Tomi Adeyemi cuts ties with Children of Blood and Bone adaptation, calls it her worst experience

Tomi Adeyemi, author of the bestselling novel Children of Blood and Bone, has publicly distanced herself from the Paramount Pictures film adaptation of her book. In a video posted in early July 2026, Adeyemi said she had lived with a difficult reality for about a year and a half.

“Everyone involved, at least at the highest level, has been made aware of this reality. And they haven’t done anything to make it better. If anything, they’ve only antagonized me. And I accept that. But I also accept if I don’t say something, I think it’s just going to be worse. I’m not going to speak on what I endured to make it through the Young Adult Trilogy,” she said in a video posted on her Instagram account.

She described leaving the set of her own film adaptation while hyperventilating and sobbing, an episode witnessed by others. After returning to America she suffered severe somatic pain and repeated panic attacks. The experience left her certain she would never be able to watch the finished film.

As marketing for the movie continued and the behind-the-scenes pressure persisted, Adeyemi decided the situation needed to be made public. She said the film, which she had worked on in the hope of making things a little better, had become the worst thing she had ever had to live through. She stated that she does not wish to speak about the project again, has nothing to say about the people who made it, and is trying to move on.

In related comments Adeyemi confirmed she has not seen the film and will not watch it. She does not mind if others choose to see it. “I wrote this for us. I fought for us. I’m just laying down my sword and officially separating my name because I can’t keep being hurt and attacked behind the scenes,” she said. She directed fans who want to support her to buy editions of her Legacy of Orïsha trilogy from independent bookstores.

“I do not care anymore. I’m trying to move on. This video might make it worse, but I don’t know how it can be any worse,” she said in her post.

Adeyemi co-wrote the screenplay with director Gina Prince-Bythewood, known for The Woman King and holds an executive producer credit, but she said final decisions always rested with the director.The Paramount adaptation is scheduled for release on 15 January 2027.

The cast is led by Thuso Mbedu as Zélie Adebola, with Amandla Stenberg as Princess Amari, Damson Idris as Prince Inan, and Tosin Cole as Tzain. It also features Viola Davis, Cynthia Erivo, Idris Elba, Lashana Lynch, Chiwetel Ejiofor as King Saran, Regina King, and others.

Ayra Starr and Richard Mofe-Damijo are starring in the film, marking their first major Hollywood projects. Nigerian singer Ayra Starr joins the ensemble after her earlier acting work, while veteran Nollywood actor Richard Mofe-Damijo, also known as RMD, takes on a role in this large-scale Paramount production alongside the international cast.

The movie packs Afrobeats top acts in the soundtracks with features from Tems, Fireboy DML, and Burna Boy as the music consultant and Tems as the executive producer of the soundtrack.

“I wanted Tems to curate the soundtrack. I wanted her to executive produce it. She’s actually the first woman to executive produce a soundtrack at this level, which is incredible. Then Burna Boy came on board as the executive music consultant.

We’ve got three new Tems tracks. Fireboy DML, BNXN (Benson), and Ayra Starr. The soundtrack is so amazing, and I’m so proud of Tems, who had never done this before and created something truly extraordinary.”

Children of Blood and Bone, Adeyemi’s 2018 debut novel inspired by West African mythology and set in the fictional kingdom of Orïsha, follows a young woman seeking to restore magic taken from her people. No further public statements from the studio or the director had been issued in immediate response to Adeyemi’s comments.