Set in contemporary New York City, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones tells the story of Clary Fray (Lily Collins), a seemingly ordinary teenager who discovers that she is the descendant of a line of Shadowhunters, a secret organization of young half-angel warriors in an ancient battle to protect our world from demons.  Adapted from the book by Cassandra Clare, action-adventure fantasy also stars Jamie Campbell Bower, Kevin Zegers, Jared Harris, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Lena Headey, CCH Pounder and Aidan Turner.  For more on the film, watch the new trailer.

While at WonderCon, actor Jamie Campbell Bower spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about how he came to this project, that the underlying love story was what really drew him to the film, just how deeply hurtful the negative fan reaction about his casting was, that the look and physicality for the character was total collaboration, how much he enjoyed the neck tattoos, his favorite action sequence, what it’s been like to have Lily Collins to go through all of this with, what he likes about Jace Wayland, and why he loves worlds built around extensive mythologies.  Hit the jump to watch or read what he had to say.

A new trailer for director Harald Zwart’s The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones has gone online.  I got to check out this particular trailer at the WonderCon panel and I was impressed by the caliber and amount of action on display.  I’m sure that fans of the source material will pick up on a lot more of the mythology than a novice like myself, but it’s got a cool aesthetic that actually looks rather inviting.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, based on the Cassandra Clare novel, stars Lily Collins, Lena Headey, Robert Sheehan, Jamie Campbell Bower, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Kevin Zegers, Kevin Durand, Jared Harris and CCH Pounder. The film opens on August 23rd, 2013.  Hit the jump to view the trailer. 

Screen Gems has released batch of new character images from director Harald Zwart’s adaptation of the Cassandra Clare YA novel The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.  The story follows Clary Fray (Lily Collins), a teenage girl who discovers that she’s descended from a sect of half-angel warriors who protect the world from demons.  These images give us a number of new looks at the supporting characters in the film, as well as principals Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, and a rather intense-looking Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

Hit the jump to take a look at the images, and if you missed any of Steve’s set visit coverage check out 35 things to know about the film and his interviews with Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower, Jared Harris, director Harald Zwart, author Cassandra Clare, and producers Don Carmody and Robert Kulzer.  The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones opens on August 23rd.

Valentine Morgenstern (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) is holding Clary Fray (Lily Collins) down on a long wooden table.  He’s angry, and getting more frustrated with each passing second.  Standing close by is Jace Wayland (Jamie Campbell Bower), who is covered in tattoos, and he looks concerned.  After some time passes, Valentine screams “I want my cup!” A second later, he slams Clary’s head onto the table and turns around and hits Jace.  Immediately Jace says, “you said you wouldn’t hurt her!” and then grabs a long wooden staff to go in for the attack.  A second later, I hear director Harald Zwart call cut.

But let me back up a second.

About four months ago, I got to visit the set of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones with a few other reporters when the production was filming in Toronto.  While on set I participated in group interviews with the cast and filmmakers, watched a few scenes get filmed, and saw firsthand how Cassandre Clare’s extremely popular young adult series was being brought to life.  And from what I saw on set, if you’re a fan of the series, I think you’re going to be extremely happy.  Hit the jump for more.

When casting was underway on The Mortal Instruments, fans were very vocal about who should play Jace Wayland, and they weren’t happy about Jamie Campbell Bower.  Looking over the comments on our casting article, you’d have thought the world was ending.  But when I was on the set last year during production, everything I saw made me believe Campbell Bower was a great casting choice and the fans that were negative would eventually come around.  During a group interview on set, Bower talked about his casting and the negative reaction:

“I think at the beginning I was very much aware of what was being said, whether it be positive or negative; predominately negative. I have to appreciate the fact that this is a series of books that people have already encountered and people will already have preconceived notions about who the characters are. Did it affect me? Fuck yeah, of course it affected me. I’d be a cold, heartless and self-absorbed person to have it not, but it made me want to prove to these people that say I can’t do this that I really can. If I can win over 50% of the people who said that I couldn’t do this or didn’t want me to do this, then I feel like I’ve done my job.”

He went on to talk about how he prepared to play the role, the tattoos, the audition process, how he made the character his own, and so much more.  Hit the jump to either read or listen to what he had to say.

Screen Gems has released the first trailer for the adaptation of Cassandra Clare‘s young adult novel The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones.  The story follows Clary Fray (Lily Collins), a teenage girl who discovers that she’s descended from a sect of half-angel warriors who protect the world from demons.  As a teen drama with ties to the occult, The Mortal Instruments will draw comparisons to Twilight.  But the trailer—specifically the sword fights and flamethrowers within— suggest more ass-kicking.  There is a big world and dense mythology here to explore, and the visuals help sell it better than the synopsis ever could.  It helps when you have Mad Men‘s eloquent Jared Harris to deliver the exposition in what sure looks like the “Giles” role.

Jamie Campbell Bower, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Lena Headey, Kevin Durand, CCH Pounder, and Kevin Zegers also star.  Directed by Harald Zwart (The Karate Kid), The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones opens August 23, 2013.  Watch the trailer after the jump.

Although the release date for The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is still about a year away, we have a production update to share with you.  Along with a new promotional image, we have a fully updated cast listing for the Harald Zwart-directed adaptation of the best-selling Cassandra Clare novel. The fantasy series follows a teenage girl who discovers that she’s descended from a sect of half-angel warriors who protect the world from demons.  Hit the jump for the most up-to-date casting info and a new promotional image.

[This is a re-print of my review from the 2011 Toronto Film Festival]

In Anonymous, Edward de Vere, the Earl of Oxford (Rhys Ifans) tells young playwright Ben Jonson (Sebastian Armesto), “All artists have something to say because otherwise they’d just make shoes.” It’s a funny quote when you consider that director Roland Emmerich‘s previous filmography is mainly comprised of brainless blockbusters like Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, and 2012. Anonymous, a political thriller wrapped in a conspiracy theory, could not be further from those movies and Emmerich sets out like a man with something to prove. There are no monsters, aliens, cataclysms, and the only explosion is the destruction of the Globe Theatre, which actually did burn to the ground in 1613. The film plays fast and loose with most historical facts (including why the Globe burned down), but it manages to craft an intriguing period piece before getting bogged down in political intrigue and tearing down historical figures.

With Roland Emmerich’s period drama Anonymous opening this weekend, I recently got to speak with two of the stars, Rhys Ifans and Jamie Campbell Bower.  While Emmerich is known for his big-budget disaster movies like 2012 and Independence Day, Anonymous is quite a departure, as the story centers on a conspiracy to cover up the true author of William Shakespeare’s plays.  There are no monsters or aliens.  Instead, Emmerich has made a really entertaining political thriller wrapped in a conspiracy theory that also stars David Thewlis, Joely Richardson, Rafe Spall, Xavier Samuel and Vanessa Redgrave.  Here are some clips and the trailer.

During a very fun and relaxed interview, Ifans and Campbell Bower talked about video games, karaoke, whether or not Shakespeare really wrote his plays, 3D, and Ifans talks about what fans can look forward to in The Amazing Spider-Man and Campbell Bower talks about Twilight and Mortal Instruments. Hit the jump to watch.

We’ve been provided with 5 clips from director Roland Emmerich’s period drama Anonymous to share with our readers.  Best known for big-budget films like 2012 and Independence Day, the film marks quite a departure for the director.  The story centers on a conspiracy to cover up the true authors of William Shakespeare’s plays, as the works were used to criticize the monarchy.  The cast includes Jamie Campbell Bower, Rhys Ifans, David Thewlis, Joely Richardson, and Vanessa Redgrave.  Hit the jump to watch the clips. Anonymous opens October 28th.

A new trailer for Roland Emmerich’s Anonymous has gone online.  Like the previous trailer, there’s the poor decision to use Radiohead’s “Everything in Its Right Place”, but we also get a better explanation of the plot.  The movie isn’t simply about the controversial theory that William Shakespeare didn’t write his own plays.  The controversy is wrapped up in a much larger period drama involving political intrigue and how the plays were used to criticize the monarchy while protecting the identities of the true authors.  The larger question isn’t whether or not Shakespeare wrote his plays and poems, but if a big-budget director like Emmerich can go through an entire movie without destroying a revered building or monument.

Hit the jump to check out the new trailer.  The film stars Jamie Campbell Bower, Rhys Ifans, David Thewlis, Joely Richardson, and Vanessa Redgrave.  Anonymous will play at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival and hit theaters on October 28th.

After premiering the first season in April with Joseph Fiennes, Eva Green, Claire Forlani, and more leading the series, Starz has officially decided it will not pursue their medieval drama series Camelot for a second season. A representative for the cable network says, “Due to significant production challenges, Starz has decided not to exercise the option for subsequent seasons of Camelot with our production partners GK-tv, Octagon Films and Take 5 Productions.”  Honestly, I was never sold on the series to begin with as it just seemed like they were taking the violence and sex of Spartacus: Blood and Sand and sending it over to Camelot. Between this and Party Down (a very funny show that, for whatever reason, lacked an audience), the cable company doesn’t seem to have as much luck with their original series’ as Showtime or HBO.

A couple weeks ago, we reported that Jamie Campbell Bower (The Twilight Saga: New Moon), Ed Speleers (Eragon), and Leebo Freeman were all in the running for the male lead in Scott Charles Stewart’s adaptation of the young adult book series The Mortal Instruments.  Deadline is now reporting that Bower has won that race and will play Jace Wayland.  Jace is a member of a group known as “Shadowhunters” who are warriors devoted to ridding the world of demons.  The book’s protagonist Clary Fray (played by Lily Collins and I swear I’m not making up these character names) witnesses a murder and is eventually drawn into the world of the Shadowhunters.  In the synopsis, Jace is described as “a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk.”  Is the tagline for this movie going to be “This totally isn’t anything like Twilight, but if you liked Twilight, you should see this movie.”

Hit the jump for a synopsis of the first novel in The Mortal Instruments series, City of Bones.

Now that the cast of The Hunger Games is just about set, it’s time to move on to the next teen fantasy/adventure book series film adaptation: The Mortal Instruments. Lily Collins (Priest) is locked as the lead in the Scott Stewart-directed flick. The Wrap reports that Jamie Campbell Bower, Ed Speleers and Leebo Freeman all tested opposite Collins on the Sony lot last week.

Bower is somewhat of a veteran of teen books-turned-films, having appeared in both Twilight (as Caius) and Harry Potter (as Gellert Grindelwald). Speleers is best known for 2006’s Eragon and Freeman is a newcomer. The book series centers on 15-year-old Clary Fray who witnesses a murder only to discover that she has encountered the “Shadowhunters”, a secret tribe of warriors who are on a mission to destroy demons. Hit the jump for a synopsis of the first novel in The Mortal Instruments series.

Columbia Pictures has released the first trailer for Roland Emmerich’s Anonymous, a political thriller based on the controversy of who really wrote the plays credited to William Shakespeare.  Per the official synopsis, “Anonymous poses one possible answer, focusing on a time when cloak-and-dagger political intrigue, illicit romances in the Royal Court, and the schemes of greedy nobles hungry for the power of the throne were exposed in the most unlikely of places: the London stage.”  Since this is Emmerich’s first film where he’s not obliterating a city, the curiosity factor is too high to avoid, but this trailer does an awful job of explaining the plot beyond “Shakespeare didn’t write his plays.  Now please enjoy 16th century CGI England.”  The release date is still a ways off so I’m sure we’ll get a more plot-heavy trailer a few months from now.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film stars Jamie Campbell Bower, Rhys Ifans, David Thewlis, Joely Richardson, and Vanessa Redgrave.  Anonymous hits theaters on September 30th.