It’s taken studios a while to get their movies that want to tap into the Twilight audience ready, but now a few are getting close to going in front of the cameras, including The Mortal Instruments, based on the book by Cassandra Clare. Now Variety reports that Jamie Campbell Bower has been cast as the male lead in the Screen Gems film, as Jace Wayland. It’s taken them a while to find the right person, as a casting call for the role first went out in January.
Alex Pettyfer was rumored to be in contention for the role, before he reportedly ditched the project in favour of The Last Apprentice. Bower first came to prominence playing opposite Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd and has since played Caius in the Twilight series and Gellert Grindelwald in Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows, as well as being King Arthur in the new TV series Camelot.
The Mortal Instruments is about a young woman named Clary Fray (Lily Collins) who discovers she has ‘The Sight,’ the ability to see both demons and Shadowhunters. Clary Fray reaches out to Jace Wayland, a legendary Shadowhunter, who helps her track down Clary’s abducted mother.
Scott Stewart (Priest, Legion) is directing The Mortal Instruments from a screenplay by Jessica Postigo.