Lily Collins' Mortal Instruments Sequel Happening After All

British star will be returning to the Twilight-esque franchise after the studio behind it gave the next movie the greenlight despite financial concerns

By Josh Grossberg Oct 23, 2013 8:45 PMTags
Mortal Instruments: City of BonesSony Pictures/Constantin Film International GmbH and Unique Features (TMI) Inc.

Lily Collins is getting another shot at those demons.

After getting postponed due to the lackluster box office performance of its predecessor, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, production on The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes is back on.

That's good news for the 24-year-old English actress, who will reprise her role as supernatural teen Clary Fray for the second film adaptation in Cassandra Clare's bestselling fantasy series.

Initially, filming was supposed to commence in early September. But Constantin Film decided to put the next installment on hold after City of Bones grossed a disastrous $31 million at the domestic box office, little more than half its $60 million budget. The result was a big disappointment for the German distributor's hopes of capitalizing on a successful YA franchise similar to how Summit fared with Twilight.

In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter however, Constantin's head of film and TV, Martin Moszkowicz, said execs opted to go ahead with the follow up after intense interest from the books' hardcore fan base despite the first movie's poor reviews.

"We are analyzing what we did wrong with the first film—particularly with the positioning and marketing—and what changes we have to make," he said. "We are working with a great group of people to reposition the franchise."

Collins' costar (and ex-beau), Jamie Campbell Bower, will also be back for the next installment while Sigourney Weaver is said to be attached to play the leader of the Shadowhunters, a secretive race of warriors born with angelic blood whose job is to hunt down the demons.

If all goes according to plan, The Mortal Instruments: City of Ashes will begin shooting sometime next year.