Hold on to your lightning bolts! The Percy Jackson and the Olympians book series is officially being adapted into a television show for Disney+.
Reports of a possible television adaptation — based on the fantasy novels by Rick Riordan — first started swirling in May 2020. At the time, Riordan and his wife, Becky Riordan, appeared to confirm the news in a video uploaded to his website.
“Hey Percy Jackson fans, for the past decade, you’ve worked hard to champion a faithful on-screen adaptation of Percy Jackson’s world,” the author wrote, in part, alongside the 18-second clip. “Some of you have even suggested it would be a good series for Disney+. We couldn’t agree more!”
The five-book series — which was published between 2005 and 2009 — introduced fans to a 12-year-old Demigod named Percy Jackson, who discovers early on that he’s the son of the Greek God Poseidon.
Riordan’s novels were previously adapted into a two-film series starring Logan Lerman as the title character alongside Brandon T. Jackson as Grover Underwood and Alexandra Daddario as Annabeth Chase. The first movie, Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, premiered in February 2010 with the second, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, premiering in August 2013.
Over the years, the film adaptations have been widely criticized by fans of the original book series and Riordan himself.
“I still have not seen the movies, and don’t plan on ever doing so,” the author wrote in a since-deleted Twitter post from June 2020, per Entertainment Weekly. “I judge them from having read the scripts, because I care most about the story. I certainly have nothing against the very talented actors. Not their fault. I’m just sorry they got dragged into that mess.”
So, when the opportunity for a Percy Jackson TV series came across his desk, Riordan was initially very skeptical.
“I’m not a fan of Hollywood, I’ve never been starstruck. I could[n’t] care less about TV and film, honestly. But that’s not true of my fans. They really wanted new adaptations, and they felt bitterly disappointed by the movies,” he told The Guardian in October 2020, noting that he and his wife “owed it to the fans to try one more time.”
Even Lerman, who played Percy Jackson in the films, is on board with the upcoming TV show.
“Excited to see this!” the Perks of Being a Wallflower star wrote on Twitter in May 2020 alongside an article about the show. “Hope it gets the adaptation the books deserve.”
Scroll through our gallery for everything to know about the Percy Jackson series so far:
“We can’t say much more at this stage, but we are very excited about the idea of a live-action series of the highest quality, following the storyline of the original Percy Jackson five-book series, starting with The Lightning Thief in season one,” Riordan wrote on his website in May 2020. “Rest assured that Becky & I will be involved in person in every aspect of the show. There will be much more news in the future, but for now, we have a lot of work to do! Buckle up, demigods. It’s going to be a fantastic, exciting ride!” Moviestore/Shutterstock
The Hunters star shared his support of the upcoming series via Twitter. “Congrats @rickriordan,” he tweeted in May 2020. Kobal/Shutterstock
Lerman also said he’s “open” to possibly appearing in the series. “I’m curious to see what’s going to happen with it and I’m just glad that Rick, the writer — it seems like he’s in control or has a say. I’m not sure how much say he had in the [movies] we did way back when a couple years ago. I hope that they get good scripts together,” the Stuck in Love star told Access Hollywood in June 2020. “That’s the next step. They mention an announcement, but the truth is there’s a whole process of development where you have to get good scripts together and get it greenlit by the network. I’d be curious to see how it comes along but if I’m right for it, of course I’d consider it.” Magnus Sundholm/Shutterstock
In a December 2020 TikTok video, Riordan gave fans a first look at the show. “A super short teaser that will appear today at the Disney shareholders meeting,” the author captioned the clip. “Still a long way to go but I am so excited!” Courtesy Rick Riordan/TikTok
In April 2021, Riordan took to his website with a “Preliminary Casting Call for Percy Jackson.” His lengthy post explained that the “casting process is now in its earliest stages,” noting that they are “looking for an actor who can ‘play 12.’” He added, “That allows for a range in the actual age of the actor, but the goal is to stay true to the original story and have Percy’s character age from 12 to 16 over the course of the TV series, assuming, of course, we are lucky enough to make all five seasons. That will depend on viewership on Disney+, which is where all of you can help!” Concluding his post, the author shared: “We are looking for the best person who can embody the character we all know and love from the books.” Kobal/Shutterstock
The White Lotus star told The Wrap in December 2021 that she “loved” working on the Percy Jackson films during the early days of her career. “When I stepped into Percy Jackson and got that job, I had no idea what it was. I was, like, a bit part actor in New York City, you know? I was a kid, I was working at a bar, I didn’t have any idea of Hollywood or of all this stuff,” she said. “And so when I got that job, I didn’t really know what I was stepping into. I knew it was a really big movie. And it was the most amazing experience for a 22/23-year-old to have.” Daddario noted that she’s “so excited” to see how the new cast will “inspire a new generation of young women.” She added: “Like it’s so cool, Annabeth is a really inspiring character to people. But no, I don’t know anything about it beyond that, and I shouldn’t! I was just the girl in the movie.” Picture Perfect/Shutterstock
In a January 2022 video announcement shared via Disney+, Riordan officially confirmed the show. “The wait is over, demigods,” he said, in part. “I am thrilled to be the first to tell you that Percy Jackson and the Olympians is really, truly, and for sure coming to your screens. the smart folks at Disney+ have given us the green light.” Riordan and his wife were named as executive producers on the project. The author will also write the pilot episode with Jon Steinberg. Courtesy Disney Plus/YouTube
The show is set to start production in summer 2022, per a press release from Disney+. Kobal/Shutterstock
In April 2022, Disney+ announced that Walker Scobell, who previously starred in The Adam Project alongside Ryan Reynolds, would take on the role of the titular demigod. "Walker Scobell is an incredibly talented young man who blew us away with his audition tapes for the role of Percy," Riordan wrote via his blog. "It was obvious to me and the rest of the team that Walker had the perfect mix of comedic timing, sweetness, rebelliousness, snark and heroism to embody our hero Percy Jackson. ... He is going to surpass your highest expectations from the very first line of the show." MediaPunch/Shutterstock
"Heroes in the making. 🗡⚡️🐐 Meet Annabeth, Percy, and Grover," the official Disney+ Instagram account announced in May 2022, revealing that Leah Sava Jeffries and Aryan Simhadri would play Annabeth Chase and Grover Underwood, respectively, on the upcoming series. "In his auditions for Grover Underwood, Aryan won our hearts," Riordan wrote about the new addition on his website after the casting was announced. "He had me laughing out loud with his delivery and timing. ... Grover has some big flying shoes to fill, but Aryan is exactly the right guy for the job." The author added that Jeffries was "my number one choice for Annabeth" after she read for the role. "Leah is exactly the way I imagined [her] in the books: smart, strong and courageous, a true daughter of Athena who has zero patience for the foolishness of a certain Seaweed Brain. Watching her act with Walker and Aryan, I saw Annabeth Chase come to life." Shutterstock; Instagram(2)
With the core trio cast, Disney+ announced in June 2022 that Virginia Kull had been cast as Percy's kind, protective mother Sally Jackson, while his rude, obnoxious stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, would be played Timm Sharp. At Camp Half Blood, the kids will be watched over by Jason Mantzoukas as Mr. D, a.k.a. Dionysous, the irritable, hilarious head of the summer camp. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom actor Glynn Turman will portray Mr. Brunner, a.k.a Chiron, the centaur and horse trainer who looks after Percy's well-being, Megan Mullally will star as Alecto, a fate devoted to Hades who has been disguising herself as evil math teacher Mrs. Dodds. Anthony Harvey/Shutterstock; MediaPunch/Shutterstock
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