TORONTO — The studio behind the big screen adaptations of Cassandra Clare’s The Mortal Instruments novels said Wednesday it is hoping to start work next year on the second film in the series.
Martin Moszkowicz of Constantin Film told The Hollywood Reporter the company has not given up on the franchise.
“The fan response, from the blogosphere and the thousands of emails we have received, has encouraged us to keep going,” he said.
Production of The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes was scheduled to begin in Toronto on Sept. 23 and wrap up in early December but Constantin Film pulled the plug in early September after the first chapter, City of Bones, flopped at the box office.
City of Bones, which was shot in Toronto, had a budget of $60 million — and an equal amount was reportedly spent promoting the film — yet it opened in third place with only $9.3 million and fell to No. 7 in its second weekend of release.
The movie, starring Lily Collins and Jamie Campbell Bower, has gone on to earn a disappointing $80.2 million worldwide.
Moszkowicz said producers are analyzing what went wrong, including whether it was a mistake to target female teens in the marketing campaign.
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