'Percy Jackson' Series Greenlit On Disney+
For the past couple of years, author Rick Riordan has been heavily hinting that another cinematic take on his beloved Percy Jackson and the Olympians book series may be happening. Riordan’s book, Percy Jackson and The Olympians: The Lightning Thief was released in 2005 and started a multi-book series and sequel series that have excited readers for years, eagerly anticipating the next adventure with Percy Jackson, Annabelle Chase, Grover, and others as they navigate the world of re-imagined Greek and Roman ancient myths. In 2010, Fox 2000 Pictures created a film adaption of The Lightning Thief directed by Harry Potter director Chris Columbus and starring Logan Lerman as Percy, Brandon T. Jackson as Grover, and Alexandra Daddario as Annabelle Chase. The next film, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, based on the second book in the series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters, followed suit in 2013, this time directed by Thor Freudenthal.
Unfortunately, these were the only two Percy Jackson films made to date, and many fans don’t even consider them to even have been made, since they are vastly different from the books. They didn’t do very well comparatively, which could be part of the reason that they never continued the series in film.
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Now, however, fans have a second chance to see the Percy Jackson books brought to life on screen. And this time around, it looks like Rick Riordan will actually be involved, at least more than he was for the movies. Which should give fans hope that they won’t stray too far from the essence of the books.
For the past two years, Rick Riordan has been hinting heavily that something may be up, and there were whispers that Disney was talking about reviving Percy Jackson for the screen. Fans have been ecstatic waiting for confirmation. On January 25, Disney officially announced that they have ordered a full series for Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The series will be premiering on Disney+.
Rick Riordan took to his social media in response to this announcement, saying;
“The wait is over demigods. 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 good folks at Disney+ have given us the green light.”
And the even better news? Rick Riordan will be writing the pilot of the series alongside Jon Steinberg who is known for his work on Black Sails. The director will be James Bobin, who has directed The Muppets and Disney+’s Mysterious Benedict Society series, among many other films. Steinberg will also be an executive producer alongside Don Shotz. Rick Riordan and his wife Rebecca Riordan will also be executive producers alongside Monica Owusu-Breen, Bert Salke, Jim Rowe, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, D.J. Goldberg, and Jeremy Bell. The series will be produced by 20th Television.
20th Television’s president Karey Burke also spoke about the series;
“Bringing Rick Riordan's brilliant 'Percy Jackson' books to Disney+ as a television series has been a mission for so many of us at this company as well as for Rick himself. This will be an adaptation for the ages, with all the excitement, action and mythology fans of the books expect and love.”
Disney Branded Television’s director Ayo Davis said:
“With Rick Riordan, Jon Steinberg and Dan Shotz leading our creative team, we’re deep into creating a compelling TV series worthy of the heroic mythological characters that millions of 'Percy Jackson' readers know are well-worth caring about, and we’re eager to invite Disney+ audiences into stories that are true to the blockbuster franchise and full of anticipation, humor, surprise, and mystery.”
They are still in the casting phase of the show, but it is well underway. We don’t know much about what the series will focus on, although Disney is just giving us the first book, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, synopsis as a potential subject matter. So, it could be that this first series will just follow Percy Jackson’s adventures as he finds out he is a demigod and the son of Poseidon. In the first book, Percy has to find Zeus’s lightning bolt and restore order to Olympus because Zeus believes that Percy has stolen it.
This is as much information as we know for now, but hopefully, Rick or Disney will give us something more soon!
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