The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013)
- Eagle-eyed viewers have noticed a hidden easter egg referencing Harald Zwart's previous film in the background of the opening scene.
- During the filming of The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, Lily Collins improvised one of the most famous lines in the movie.
- Harald Zwart originally wanted a completely different ending for the film, but test audiences preferred the one we see today.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones is a 2013 Canadian-German fantasy action film directed by Harald Zwart, based on Cassandra Clare's 2007 bestselling novel. Lily Collins stars as Clary Fray, a seemingly ordinary New York teenager who discovers she is a Shadowhunter β a member of a secret lineage of half-angel warriors who protect the human world from demons and other supernatural threats. When Clary's mother is kidnapped by a rogue Shadowhunter named Valentine Morgenstern, played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Clary must navigate a hidden world of warlocks, werewolves, and vampires alongside the brooding warrior Jace, played by Jamie Campbell Bower.
The film was designed to launch a franchise to compete with The Hunger Games and Twilight but arrived as audience fatigue with YA adaptations was setting in. The Mortal Instruments earned $90 million worldwide on a $60 million budget, insufficient for sequels, though the property was successfully rebooted as the television series Shadowhunters.





