The fantasy epic Children of Blood and Bone is officially coming to theaters and IMAX on January 15, 2027. The announcement came at CinemaCon in Las Vegas, where Paramount debuted the film’s first trailer to an audience of theater owners.
The footage unveiled the world of Orïsha, the fictional West African-inspired kingdom at the heart of Tomi Adeyemi’s beloved 2018 novel. The trailer brought into focus a cast that reads like a who’s who of contemporary Black cinema. Chiwetel Ejiofor, an Oscar nominee, takes on the role of the tyrant King Saran, the force Zélie is fighting against. Amandla Stenberg plays Princess Amari, and Damson Idris steps in as her brother Prince Inan. Tosin Cole plays Zélie’s brother Tzain. And anchoring the ensemble are Viola Davis, Regina King, Idris Elba, Cynthia Erivo, and Lashana Lynch, all in key roles. Adding further texture to the world are Afrobeats star Ayra Starr and veteran Nollywood actor Richard Mofe-Damijo, whose casting brought considerable excitement when announced earlier.
Prince-Bythewood, returning to the director’s chair for the first time since The Woman King, has been emphatic that the film had to be made on the continent. The production shot across multiple African locations, with costumes drawing inspiration from cultures across the continent, and the cast trained extensively to perform their own stunts. The world needed to feel real even when the magic was extraordinary.
Adeyemi’s trilogy, which opened with Children of Blood and Bone, continued in Children of Virtue and Vengeance, and concluded with Children of Anguish and Anarchy in 2024, debuted at number one on the New York Times bestseller list, making it one of the most commercially and culturally resonant fantasy series of the last decade.
Adeyemi’s novel has had a devoted readership since it landed in 2018, and the story, about a young woman fighting to restore magic to a kingdom that has had it violently suppressed, carries the kind of urgency that tends to translate well when a filmmaker is genuinely invested. Prince-Bythewood clearly is.
January 2027. Put it in your calendar!
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