The Next Big Fantasy Movie Franchise Is At Risk Of Fumbling After A 9-Year Wait

Children of Blood and Bone has had a surprisingly long road to the big screen. The first book in what would become a fantasy trilogy by Tomi Adeyemi was optioned for a film adaptation before it was even published in 2018, but the production company, Fox 2000, was swallowed up by Disney during its purchase of 21st Century Fox. The film was moved over to Lucasfilm in 2019 only for the project to be put in turnaround, and Disney eventually allowed the rights to lapse.

From there, its fortunes turned. Paramount secured the distribution rights in 2022, with the author herself set to write the screenplay; in 2023, Gina Prince-Bythewood, fresh off The Woman King, came on to direct. The Underground Railroad's Thuso Mbedu will play the protagonist, and she'll be surrounded by a star-studded cast, including Viola Davis, Idris Elba, Cynthia Erivo, Amandla Stenberg, Lashana Lynch, Damson Idris, and Regina King. Hoped to be the launch of a major new franchise, Children of Blood & Bone is scheduled to release theatrically on January 15, 2027.

After this month, though, Paramount may want to rethink that date.

Is January A Smart Time To Launch A New Franchise?

Along with being a time for awards movies to continue their slow rollouts, January has a reputation for being a "dump" spot on the movie calendar, when studios release the projects they don't have much faith in or that didn't turn out as well as they'd hoped. 2026 did its part to change that – 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, the second part of a planned trilogy of 28 Days revival films, opened on January 16 to stellar reviews. Sony had real faith in it, and had even greenlit the third installment in December based on early reactions to The Bone Temple.

Alas, the film has struggled at the box office so far. After underperforming on tracking for its domestic opening and dropping a steep -72.6% in its second weekend as a winter storm closed hundreds of theaters, The Bone Temple has earned just below what Primate did in its first two weeks, despite being almost three times as expensive. It's a disappointing result for a genuinely great movie.

Multiple factors are to blame, including a potential drop-off in demand for the franchise following 28 Years Later last June, but it's hard to deny the release date didn't hurt the movie. Hollywood's scheduling habits aren't totally arbitrary – from the end of the holidays and the weather to having to compete with NFL playoffs, there's a reason January hasn't been where studios launch their tentpoles.

So, why is Paramount trying to with Children of Blood & Bone?

The simplest answer is that the movie is hoping for space. Currently scheduled across The Beekeeper 2, which doesn't risk much audience overlap, the fantasy film has a decent stretch before it encounters any major release that could steal focus. At a more desirable spot in the calendar, that won't be the case. Plus, the movie has also secured IMAX screens for that date, which the studio will be reluctant to give up.

But Paramount is still taking a big risk here. Children of Blood & Bone has the potential to launch the next big fantasy franchise, and they're betting that they won't just attract enough of an audience to succeed financially, but build the kind of engagement that can sustain sequels. After what happened to The Bone Temple, it's worth at least considering whether a different release window might serve this movie better than its current one.