Primarily filmed in Toronto, Canada, the series follows Clary Fray (Katherine McNamara), who finds out on her eighteenth birthday that she comes from a long line of Shadowhunters, human-angel hybrids who hunt down demons, and has to deal with the struggle of forbidden love.

Her mother, Jocelyn Fray, then reveals invisible inkings on her own skin, similar to those worn by the group at the club.

Knowing she will be attacked, Jocelyn fears for Clary's safety, asking their friend Dot to send her through a portal to Luke, her only father figure.

Clary is thrown into the world of demon hunting with the mysterious, narcissistic, and attractive Shadowhunters Jace, Isabelle and Alec and drags her loyal and geeky friend Simon along for the ride.

Now living amongst the fair folk, warlocks, vampires, and werewolves, Clary begins a journey of self-discovery as she learns more about her past and what her future may hold.

[21] On October 12, 2014, at Mipcom, Constantin confirmed that The Mortal Instruments will return as a television series with Ed Decter as showrunner.

[32][33] In August 2016, soon before filming on the second season was to begin, showrunner Ed Decter exited the series over "creative differences".

[34] Todd Slavkin and Darren Swimmer, who were former showrunners on Smallville, were announced as Decter's replacements in August 2016.

[4] On May 1, 2015, it was announced that Emeraude Toubia would be taking the role of Isabelle Lightwood and Alberto Rosende would be joining the cast as Simon Lewis.

[3] Two days later, on May 8, Matthew Daddario and Isaiah Mustafa were cast as Alec Lightwood and Luke Garroway, respectively.

[6] Harry Shum Jr. and Alan van Sprang later joined the cast on May 15, as Magnus Bane and Valentine Morgenstern.

[10] Shortly after, on June 9, Lisa Marcos announced she would be joining the cast as Captain Vargas, a new character created for the series by Ed Decter.

[36] On June 12, producer McG's official Twitter account stated that Kaitlyn Leeb had been cast to play the vampire, Camille Belcourt.

[39] The fictional New York Police Department's 89 Precinct was filmed in the Science Wing at the University of Toronto Scarborough.

[47] In December 2015, Netflix acquired global rights to Shadowhunters, excluding the U.S., making the series available as an original series a day after the U.S. premiere, with the first episode having launched globally on January 13, 2016, and subsequent episodes having been released on a weekly basis.

The site's consensus states, "Shadowhunters boasts visual thrills and a potential-rich premise, but they're not enough to overcome the show's self-serious silliness and dull, convoluted plots.