Tomi Adeyemi says Children of Blood and Bone film was her worst ordeal

Children of Blood and Bone author Tomi Adeyemi has described the upcoming film adaptation as "the worst thing (she's) have ever had to live through".

One day after Paramount released the first trailer for the film, which is based on her 2018 young adult fantasy novel, Adeyemi posted a TikTok video in which she distanced herself from the project in no uncertain terms.

Adeyemi, who also co-wrote the screenplay with director Gina Prince-Bythewood, told her viewers that she left the set "hyperventilating and sobbing", but did not divulge why.

"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. 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."

Adeyemi claimed that people involved with the film "at the highest level" have not "done anything" to make her situation better.

She continued, "But as it is being marketed, and as I am still being antagonised behind the scenes, which is where I hoped all of this would stay, it's become apparent to me that 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."

The writer added that being silent about what happened was "making the pain a lot worse", so she wanted to post a video so she never had to talk about it again.

"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," she declared.

Earlier this month, Adeyemi told her TikTok followers that she would not watch the film and claimed she was "being hurt and attacked behind the scenes".

She also posted a screenshot indicating that she was in a feud with actress Amandla Stenberg in February 2025, around the time The Hunger Games actress defended her casting amid colourism backlash.

Children of Blood and Bone, also starring Thuso Mbedu, Damson Idris and Cynthia Erivo, will be released in cinemas on 15 January.