Speak to me, Orïsha!

Headcanon, meta, analysis, and general hub for all Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi content. Book 3 out now! Reviews less than stellar. :( Movie now fast-tracked with Paramount with Tomi as writer/producer! Avatar by Sarah Jones via Children of Virtue and Vengeance cover.

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Thuso Mbedu Says Filming ‘Children of Blood and Bone’ Was ‘Tougher’ Than 'The Woman King'

Here’s what to know about the upcoming adaptation.

In an August 2025 interview with ELLE, Idris spoke about filming Children of Blood and Bone. “Every day was so amazing,” he said. “We filmed in Cape Town, and I was out there just taking it all in... And the cast is stacked. The same feeling you had when you walked out of Black Panther is what you’re gonna feel with this, but to an even greater extent. We’re creating something that you have not seen before, and I cannot wait for people to see it. We gave it everything. We were out there for six months. It was sword fighting, and there were lots of abs. You’re really gonna love it.”

Mbedu later confirmed Idris’s abs claim while speaking to ELLE in September 2025. “Yes, I can confirm it,” she said with a laugh. “Gina worked us hard. But yeah, the boys had to work super hard. The girls will not be disappointed.”

She described the film as “a tough project. I’ll say that. It was a lot of fun, but just physically challenging in a good way.” She added that it was “tougher than The Woman King,” the last film she worked on with Davis and Prince-Bythewood.

Readers, fret not. Adeyemi is heavily involved in the adaptation of her beloved series, executive producing and co-writing the script alongside director Gina Prince-Bythewood, equally beloved for her work directing such films as Love & Basketball, The Secret Life of Bees, The Old Guard, and The Woman King.

Adeyemi described working with Prince-Bythewood in a 2024 ELLE interview. “She’s the calmest force of nature I’ve ever witnessed and collaborating with her has been so much fun,” Adeyemi said. “What Gina does so well is tell these deep, complex stories of women who look like us front and center, with incredible action set pieces, incredible cinematography. It feels divine. It feels bigger than [just] making this project. We’re really in sync.”

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Star-Studded 'Children of Blood and Bone' Movie Wraps Filming After 74 Days

Previously, the production had announced a 2027 release date.

On June 2, 2025, Prince-Bythewood announced on her Instagram that the Children of Blood and Bone movie had wrapped filming the day before, just a little under three months since production began.

“That is a wrap on production!” the director wrote. “74 days. Two countries and two islands. A passionate and dedicated crew. And an extraordinary cast who gave EVERYTHING. And the journey has just begun…”

Paramount Pictures has confirmed that the release date for Children of Blood and Bone will be on Jan. 15, 2027, in IMAX.

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Children of Blood and Bone Fancasts, Part 1

Because I’m loving this book way too much, and I love to fancast, too.

Khoudia Diop as Zelie

Nathan Stewart-Jarrett as Tzain

Amandla Stenberg as Amari

Jussie Smollett as Inan

Chiwetel Ejiofor as King Saran

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Omg, you predicted Amari and Saran! Dead on!

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CHILDREN OF BLOOD OF BONE FANCAST

Madina Nalwanga as Zélie

Chinaza Ruby Akubueze as Amari

Damson Idris as Tzain

Trevor Jackson as Inan

Hakeem Kae-Kazim as Lekan

Carmen Ejogo as Kaea

Idris Elba as Saran

***Note: I hope that a Nigerian actress is cast as Zelie in the official movie. Some of my castings were based on looks/statements from Tomi Adeyemi interviews. I tried my best!

–Mod Faye

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They cast Damson Idris as Inan and Idris Elba as Lekan, so this fancast was pretty good!

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‘Children Of Blood And Bone’ Film Adaptation Sets Principal Cast And Release Date

Gina Prince-Bythewood‘s movie adaptation of Children of Blood and Bone has found its principle cast in Thuso Mbedu as Zelie, Amandla Stenberg as Amari, Damson Idris as Inan and Tosin Cole as Tzain.

Also confirmed are Viola Davis as Mama Agba; Cynthia Erivo as Admiral Kaea; Idris Elba as Lekan; Lashana Lynch as Jumoke; and Chiwetel Ejiofor as King Saran.

In negotiations are Regina King as Queen Nehanda; Diaana Babnicova as Folake; and Bukky Bakray as Binta.

The film is based on the bestselling novel of the same name by Tomi Adeyemi. The story is set in an African fantasy kingdom in which a young woman goes on a quest to reclaim the magic that was violently stolen from her people. She and her brother ally with the daughter and son of the king to fight back against his brutal rule.

The movie releases January 15, 2027 in IMAX. Production is set to begin filming in South Africa in the coming weeks. [x]

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Here's one of my big questions after the ending of Children of Anguish and Anarchy:

What the hell happened to the medallions??? Are Zélie and Mae'e free? Did the medallions leave scars? Do they live with these medallions forever? Do the medallions take over their life force eventually? WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE MEDALLIONS!?!?!?

Of course we're all wondering about Roën (and Harun), but that was my other huge plot question that was just not addressed at all.

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We always knew Children of Blood and Bones was gonna be a trilogy, but I wonder how much of that was Tomi's plan and how much of that was the publisher.

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I stumbled across an old prediction post of mine where I swore book 3 was going to be Children of Gods in some way, and today it hit me that Children of Grief and Gods imo would have been a much better title than Children of Anguish and Anarchy A) because the god thing was HUGE in the books, B) maji have the literal magic of the gods running through their blood, and C) wtf did this book have to do with anarchy? They continually refer to Orïsha as a kingdom and talk about who will lead it in the future. D|

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When we make it back to our lands, we weep. The tears we cry form rivers through our mountains. Our heartbreak hollows us from the inside out, leaving us with nothing but our scars. But we do not weep for those we have lost, we do not weep for the horrors we have faced. We weep because we are warriors. We weep because, against all odds, we have prevailed. In our sacred lands, we find the truth--the power no king can erase, a power carved through the valleys of our hearts, a force no enemy can bind in chains. We weep because our magic is eternal. We weep because our gods reign. We weep because we feel the ancestors who watch from above, waiting for the day until we rise to meet our dead. -Children of Anguish and Anarchy mythos, pg. 353

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"You can't stop me!" -Zélie, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 349

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I'm not ready for our story to end. -Zélie, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 336

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"You're the strongest force I know." -Inan to Zélie, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 336

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"Death doesn't destroy you, Zélie. It frees you. It answers your call." -Inan, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 336

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I have no one left. -Tzain, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 317

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We haven't launched an attack. We've walked straight into their ritual. -Tzain, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 285

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"Let us not forget from whose sacred fire we were forged! We are the daughters and sons of New Gaia!" -Mae'e, Children of Anguish and Anarchy, pg. 268