9 Things We Learned About ‘Shadowhunters’ from NYCC Panel

The cast and crew of Shadowhunters descended upon New York City on Saturday for New York Comic Con, where they debuted a seven minute sneak peek of the pilot, as well as participated in a Q&A session where they dished about the show.

Here are 9 things we learned from the Shadowhunters panel:

1. Shadowhunters Will Premiere on January 12, 2016

ABC Family announced at the Shadowhunters panel that the show would be premiering on Tuesday, January 12 at 9/8c following Pretty Little Liars. The show will get a nice lead-in from ABC Family’s most popular show, as well as fans from Cassie’s books.

2. There Will Be New Characters on the Show

There are changes a coming regarding the addition of new characters, and perhaps even characters from Cassandra Clare’s other books. “What we tried to do is honor everything Cassie created, but still try to throw in some surprises for the Mortal Instruments fans,” Ed Decter said. He added that we might see “characters from other Cassie Clare-created material.”

3. The Thing Cassie Was Involved With Was Casting

As an author, Cassandra Clare has no authority when it comes to the adaptation of her books. But she did reveal an aspect that she was involved in: casting. While they were casting Jace, Cassie was the one who suggested Dominic Sherwood when those involved weren’t so sure. Good thing they listened to her.

4. There Will Be Malec

You’ve never heard screams like the screams heard following the word: “Malec.” And that was especially true at the panel on Saturday. Fans of Magnus and Alec got a treat — more like a tease — of sorts from Matthew Daddario. “If you’re a fan of Malec, you might be happy,” he said.

5. Don’t Expect Sizzy Right Away

While we’re on the topic of ships, the topic of Simon and Isabelle was brought up and Emeraude Toubia shed some light on “Sizzy.” While there will be shades of Sizzy, don’t expect to see them together right away. “There is a little bit of Sizzy,” she said. “Very little, but it’s growing. There’s a spark.” This is something that is keeping with the books.

6. We Might See Chairman Meow and Church

It never ceases to amaze me how amazing the Shadowhunter Chronicles fandom is when it comes to ensuring that certain elements of the book are included in adaptations. One of those elements? Two cats: Church and Chairman Meow. When asked about their inclusion in the show, Ed Decter teased: “For those of you that like Chariman Meow and Church, stay tuned.”

7. The Slap Scene from ‘City of Bones’ Made It In the Show

One of the scenes from the City of Bones book that fans are a huge fan of is when Clary slaps Jace after he risked her life and drew a rune on her arm. He was “90 percent” sure. So then Clary slaps Jace “for the other 10 percent.” When asked about filming the scene, Dom talked about how Kat actually hit him. “‘She’s got a slap on her!” he said.

8. Simon is Indeed Jewish on the Show

Keeping in tune with the faithfulness to the books, one of the questions asked by a fan was whether or not Simon would keep his Jewish heritage that was glossed over in the film. “I can promise you we have a Jewish Simon,” Ed Decter said.

9. Clary and Isabelle Have an “Empowering” Relationship

As fans of Cassie’s books, one of the most important elements of them are the strong female characters that populate not only The Mortal Instruments but The Infernal Devices and the forthcoming The Dark Artifices. When asked about Clary and Isabelle’s relationship on the show, Emeraude Toubia talked about the importance of empowerment. “Women should empower each other. Isabelle and Clary’s relationship is about that,” she said. Kat McNamara added: “”Izzy really takes Clary under her wing.”

Shadowhunters premieres on Tuesday, January 12 at 9/8c on ABC Family/Freeform.