NYCC 2020: Shadow and Bone panel with Leigh Bardugo and Eric Heisserer

Shadow and Bone comes to New York Comic-Con 2020

The panel every bookworm was waiting for at this year’s virtual NYCC was the Shadow and Bone panel with Leigh Bardugo and Eric Heisserer. Bardugo is, of course, the author of the Grishaverse series and Heisserer is a director, writer, and showrunner of the upcoming Netflix series based on the books.

While we didn’t get a trailer, Bardugo and Heisserer did share some tidbits about what the process of making the show was like and what we can expect when the show does air. The biggest reveal was the Shadow and Bone theme song. It gives off the perfect Slavic/Eastern European vibes and is thematic and just right for the story being told.

What we learned in the Shadow and Bone panel

The two creators also talked about how they first initially “met,” which happened on Instagram when Heisserer shared his love for Six of Crows. This led to them talking about how they ended up combining the Grishaverse and Six of Crows together and how they wanted to be careful not to lose anything in telling the two stories together.

We also learned that the meeting she had with Netflix and Heisserer was definitely not the first she’s had with executives about adapting her stories into a series or a film. While she turned down those opportunities because they didn’t focus on the story being told, she greenlit this one because of how much they wanted to focus on the characters and the story (lucky us!).

We also got to hear all about Leigh’s time on set. There was a lot of crying (who could blame her??), especially when she saw some of the actors in character and when she saw certain props.

She did say that seeing Kaz’s cane for the first time in person was a really big deal for her because of how she used the story to come to terms with using a cane herself.

Bardugo also talked about the moment she knew the show would be good. Her “inner critic shut off” when seeing certain scenes and that’s when she knew the right people were making her story come to life.

Ben Barnes anecdotes

She also shared a few Ben Barnes anecdotes (which are always welcome). There was a moment where Barnes came up behind her and said the very well-known line “fine, make me your villain.” She freaked out (who wouldn’t??). She also really loved watching a scene between him and Zoë Wanamaker. She said her “brain short-circuited.”

Speaking of The Darkling and Ben Barnes, Heisserer noted that when they first started casting, they were originally wanted teenagers for the role, but at some point during the process, they realized they needed to go older to make it more believable. And that’s how Ben Barnes was cast. Bardugo talked a little bit about his performance:

"You believe [Ben] as a military leader. You believe him as someone who has endured a lot over the course of time, and I think he brought this tremendous sympathy to the role that is really important."

Bardugo also said that she has a cameo in the series so that’s definitely something we’ll need to watch out for when the show airs.

While we still don’t have a release date, hearing the author and the showrunner talk about one of the most-anticipated series in Netflix history made waiting a little bit easier.  Hopefully, we get the show (or at least the trailer) next year.

What are you most excited to see in the Shadow and Bone series? Let us know in the comments below!