Children of Blood and Bone author Tomi Adeyemi has spoken out about her negative experience on the set of the film adaptation of her debut book.

The award-winning, best-selling young adult romantic fantasy novel, published in 2018, is the first in Adeyemi’s Legacy of Orïsha trilogy. It tells the tale of the heroine Zélie Adebola as she attempts to restore magic to the kingdom of Orïsha after the ruling class suppresses the class of magic practitioners.

In 2022, Paramount Pictures announced it had won a bidding war for the rights to adapt the book. The film, which features an ensemble cast of Amandla Stenberg, Damson Idris, Viola Davis, Cynthia Erivo, Idris Elba and Regina King, was directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood from a screenplay co-written by Adeyemi.

Opening up about her time working on the film project in a new TikTok video, Adeyemi, 32, began: “What I’m about to share is not a secret to the people involved. It’s a reality that I’ve had to live with for about a year and a half, and everyone involved, at least at the highest level, has been made aware of this reality, and they haven’t done anything to make it better.

“If anything, they’ve only antagonized me,” she alleged, “and I accept that. But I also accept if I don’t say something, I think it’s just going to be worse.”

Describing the production, shot primarily in South Africa, as “the worst thing I have ever had to live through,” the Nigerian-American writer did not specify exactly what the issues were.

“I’m not going to speak on what I endured to make it through the young adult trilogy, and I’m not going to speak about everything that I also suffered through or endured to make the adaptation a reality,” Adeyemi said.

“I’m actually only going to speak about what happened after I left that set of my own film adaptation, hyperventilating and sobbing. There are many witnesses, so it’s not really a secret,” she continued.

“I came back to America and 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.”

“But as it is being marketed,” Adeyemi said, referencing the official trailer that dropped Tuesday. “And as I am still being antagonized behind the scenes, which is where I hoped all of this would stay, it’s become apparent to me that reality needs to at least be made known, so that you guys can understand how this film, which I worked on to make it a little better for us to be alive, is also the worst thing I have ever had to live through.”

Insisting that she no longer wishes “to speak on it anymore,” the author shared, “I understand that I have a public presence, and that this is a global project. It’s probably useless posting a video.

“I don’t do things like this, but I also understand that being silent about it is making the pain a lot worse. And even though it feels awful to share this, it’s better to share it and have it known and understood before I see a bunch of you for this new book,” Adeyemi said. “So please understand, I never want to hear about this project again. I don’t have anything to say about the people who made it. I do not care anymore. I’m trying to move on. This video might make it worse, but I don’t know how it can be any worse. So I’m just going to share that and let it live.”

The Independent has contacted Paramount Pictures for comment.

Weeks ago, Adeyemi posted a since-deleted TikTok video, alluding to why she no longer posts about the film adaptation.

“There is a reason I will not post anything about the adaptation of my work. That’s all,” read a screenshot of a message sent by Adeyemi in her Instagram broadcast channel last month.

The video then shows a screenshot of a message she seemingly sent to Stenberg, who appears to have been blocked by Adeyemi.

“Do not ever use my name in an interview or video again. Do not text me. Do not call me,” Adeyemi’s message read.

Bodies Bodies Bodies actor Stenberg, who plays Princess Amari in the forthcoming movie, previously faced backlash from book fans over her casting, amid accusations of colorism.

“I am four months into training for Children of Blood and Bone and I am getting my ass whooped,” Stenberg revealed last year on TikTok. “I want everyone to know that this is important to me, and I think about it with every choice that I make. I would never navigate my career blindly, not thinking about my skin tone or the space I occupy. I would never go after a role I didn’t feel was right for me. I want to see all skin tones represented in media. I know that colorism is an insidious system that relentlessly impacts every facet of entertainment.”

Children of Blood and Bone premieres in theaters January 15, 2027.