'Shadowhunters' Will Be Its Own Adaptation

Are you excited for the all-new action-packed supernatural drama series arriving on Freeform (the network formerly known as ABC Family) called Shadowhunters? Because I am! The show is based on a young adult book series written by Cassanda Clare titled The Mortal Instruments, and Season 1 will follow the first book: City of Bones. But, as many fans of the book know, Hollywood previously attempted to adapt the novel. So, will Shadowhunters have any connection to the movie The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones ? And if so, how will they relate?

I've done some digging, and so far as I can tell, Shadowhunters will be an entirely new and standalone adaptation of Clare's novel, with no relation whatsoever to The Mortal Instruments movie. If you are one of the rare butterflies that actually enjoyed the film — seriously, it was not well-liked by viewers and even less so by critics — that may be somewhat disappointing. But, as for the rest of us who weren't pleased (and may have been unreasonably angry) about The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, this news should come as a relief. Really, we're very lucky since most failed YA film franchises end up not going anywhere, so the fact that Shadowhunters is happening is fantastic.

So, what does this actually mean for Shadowhunters? Well, the first season is basically going to be retelling the same story from the first novel in Clare's series and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. That means all the main characters were re-cast; for instance, Lily Collins played lead character Clary Fray in the film but in the TV series she'll be portrayed by Katherine McNamara, and Jamie Campbell Bower played mysterious demon hunter Jace Wayland in the movie but Dominic Sherwood will bring the character to life on the small screen. Additionally, the television series will follow roughly the same storyline as was seen in The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones. Take a look at the official Shadowhunters synopsis for its premiere episode "The Mortal Cup":

One young woman realizes how dark the city can really be when she learns the truth about her past. Based on the bestselling young adult fantasy book series The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, “Shadowhunters” follows Clary Fray, who finds out on her birthday that she is not who she thinks she is but rather comes from a long line of Shadowhunters – human-angel hybrids who hunt down demons. Now thrown into the world of demon hunting after her mother is kidnapped, Clary must rely on the mysterious Jace and his fellow Shadowhunters Isabelle and Alec to navigate this new dark world. With her best friend Simon in tow, Clary must now live among faeries, warlocks, vampires and werewolves to find answers that could help her find her mother. Nothing is as it seems, including her close family friend Luke who knows more than he is letting on, as well as the enigmatic warlock Magnus Bane who could hold the key to unlocking Clary’s past.

Basically, the Shadowhunters premise is exactly the same as that of City of Bones and The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.

So, if you're a fan of the movie looking for new adventures within the world of Shadowhunters, I'm sorry to say you're going to be disappointed. However, if you're a fan of the book and were hoping for a better adaptation, you may get it with Freeform's new series. But, although Shadowhunters will be loyal to the book, it won't be a strict adaptation. During the special, Beyond the Shadows: The Making of Shadowhunters, the cast revealed the show will change some things in order to keep the show interesting — even for fans of the book and movie! Since the series will be following a story that has already been told twice in other forms of media, that will hopefully come in handy for Shadowhunters while entertaining viewers!

Images: Bob D'Amico/ABC Family