Tomi Adeyemi’s ascension in the literary world has been incredible. When her 2018 novel, Children of Blood and Bone debuted, the Nigerian writer (then only 24 years young) received a laundry list of impressive awards and recognitions. It was the first of three books in her groundbreaking Legacy of Orïsha series. The trilogy also includes Children of Virtue and Vengeance (December 2019) and Children of Anguish and Anarchy (June 2024). 

Adeyemi’s young adult (YA) fantasy debuted in the number one spot on the coveted New York Times Bestseller List and in 2019 (and remained there for an outstanding 25 consecutive weeks), she was named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 list and in 2020, she was named to the TIME 100 Most Influential People of 2020 in the Pioneers category. The now 33-year-old author deserves every single accolade she’s received. Nearly three million copies of the book have been sold worldwide.

The Chicago raised, Harvard University grad made headlines once again in January 2022 by accomplishing yet another amazing career milestone. Adeyemi landed a lucrative deal with Paramount Pictures that would bring her bestseller to the big screen, allowing for what many hoped would be a beautiful portrayal of rich, layered under and misrepresented African culture through the lens of a young, creative mind. Entertainment publication Deadline was an early reporter of the news. The outlet declared that”Adeyemi will adapt, pen the script and also executive produce.”

It was major.

In January 2022, Deadline also reported: “Tomi Adeyemi’s Children of Blood and Bone has not only become a phenomenon in the YA world, it has transformed every expectation of what world-building fantasy can be,” said Co-President of Paramount Pictures Motion Group Daria Cercek. “It’s with enormous pride that our studio — along with Tomi and our partners — set out to bring this franchise to life on the big screen. With its thought-provoking and timely themes, we know that this story will resonate with a global audience.”

“Paramount’s passion and enthusiasm to bring this story to life has been incredible,” Adeyemi said according to Deadline. “We are all so excited for this new chapter and are already hard at work.”

And then on December 14, 2023, the renowned Gina Prince-Bythewood was announced as the highly anticipated film’s director. A former Black Women in Hollywood award winner, Prince-Bythewood seemed like a magical fit for the project. Like Adeyemi, Bythewood (who made her feature film directorial debut with the cult classic, Love & Basketball) is passionate about intentional storytelling. Gina also co-wrote the script with Adeyemi with her husband, Reggie Rock Bythewood, serving as an executive producer. 

In a June 2024 Elle interview, Adeyemi sang Prince-Bythewood’s praises, “What Gina does so well is tell these deep, complex stories of women who look like us front and center, with incredible action set pieces, incredible cinematography.” she said. “It feels bigger than [just] making this project. We’re really in sync.” 

In our own recent exclusive with the director, Prince-Bythewood was adamant about staying true to the novel as much as possible. “For me, the book is always the Bible. It’s not a blueprint. There’s a reason why people fell in love with the book and I’m no different. And so I’m of course going to honor the source material that everyone fell in love with.” She continued, “The beauty of this process is that Tomi and I were aligned in that vision.”

Fast-forward to last week when the first looks of the trailer were released, and Adeyemi proclaimed that the film was “the worst thing I’ve ever lived through” and that she left her own film set adaptation “hyperventilating and sobbing” in a five-minute-long, and rather cryptic, TikTok video. She stated that she “suffered such severe somatic pain and so many panic attacks.” “I knew it was so bad that I would never ever be able to watch this film, and I made peace with that,” she said. 

So, when did the alignment Prince-Bythewood talked about as recently as last month go awry? And how did what many would assume to be an author’s dream become such a nightmare for Adeyemi?

Some speculated that the catalyst for Adeyemi’s disapproval stemmed from the film’s casting as there was growing chatter online about discontent over the lead role of Princess Amari being played by Amandla Stenberg, citing that colorism was a factor and that the role should have been filled by someone of a darker complexion. But there are claims that Adeyemi went on record saying lighter complexioned actresses Tessa Thompson or Zendaya would be a dream casting of the role, that hypothesis doesn’t track.

Still others argue that the authenticity of the accents and other important cultural nuances are off in the film adaptation which are of course quite subjective. But even if correct, could that solely be the reason for Adeyemi’s severe anguish and bold decision to publicly announce not seeing the film she was once so excited about?

The specifics of this answer still have most of us scratching our heads as Adeyemi has omitted key details in her social media feedback (as she’s likely obligated to do for legal reasons).

A book, and especially one’s first book, is akin to an author’s baby. They did give birth to it after all. To hand it over to someone else (however talented and sincere they might be) for a film adaptation and to trust them to handle it with the same care and consideration as you would is a tall, and perhaps unrealistic, order. There are so many variables to consider such as lighting, casting, set design, budgets, costume design, etc. and it is almost impossible for there not to be some creative compromise. This is not at all uncommon.

Still, to witness this fallout saddens us largely in part because all of the major players involved from Tomi and Gina of course, but also those in front of the camera such as Regina King, Viola Davis, Idris Elba and Chiwetel Ejiofor, are all so hardworking and talented. It feels like deeply loved family members are at odds and we just want everyone to get along and come to Big Mama’s house for dinner on Sunday to make up.

Only time can tell how the chips will ultimately fall. We sincerely wish the best for all involved and look forward to seeing the film for ourselves in January 2027.