Either producers Constantin Film are feeling optimistic that this summer’s YA hopeful “The Mortal Instruments: City Of Bones” won’t go the way of “Beautiful Creatures” and “The Host” — both adaptations of best-selling books that no one really cared about — or they are just being smart and getting prepared in the event that on August 23rd, more people buy tickets for ‘Bones’ than for Edgar Wright‘s “The World’s End.” Whatever the reason, this is just what you do in Hollywood these days: you prepare for the eventuality of a franchise. And just as countless movies have done before (for example, “John Carter“) a followup is being readied so they can hit the ground running if they’ve got a hit on their hands.
THR reveals that Constantin has put an adaptation of “Infernal Devices” — based on the the prequel book series to ‘Bones’ — into development. We barely understand what ‘Bones’ is about, but ‘Devices’ apparently features character overlap, but since it’s set in Victorian England, includes ancestors of characters as well. Wouldn’t the smart play be to put the ‘Bones’ sequel into development instead? You would think so, but apparently at WonderCon, fans freaked out over the character of Clare, lining up to meet whoever was dressed up as her (i.e. it didn’t matter if it was Lily Collins or not — ouch).
But as always, a fanbase who loves the books doesn’t always translate to a fanbase who buys tickets to the movies. And more importantly, it’s the mainstream crowd — who don’t know a Mortal Instrument from an Infernal Device — who really needs to be sold on the picture and feel it’s worth their time.