Previously back in 2010, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lighting Thief released. This film stars Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, and Brandon T. Jackson, who grossed over $225M on a $95M budget. Meanwhile, its sequel, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, released in 2013, had a loss grossing under $200M on a $90M budget. This loss led to the studio discontinuing the series; thus, only two of the five books being adapted into movies. This news couldn’t have hit Rick Riordan any faster as he had a dislike for the movie versions. He didn’t dislike the actors for how they performed but the scriptwriters themselves who made major changes to his original story. The most prominent change being Percy being played by an 18-year-old while originally he was 12 years old.
What will be the Percy Jackson TV Series about?
The Percy Jackson Disney Plus TV Series will reportedly follow the storyline of the five books in the series. This series will begin with the adaptation of the first book, The Lightning Thief, for the first season. This means that the show may go up to five seasons as it adapts each of the books into its own season. If given the green light, the series is to be adapted by Touchstone Television. Percy Jackson is a 12-year-old boy who learns that he is the son of Poseidon, the Greek god of the sea. After he learns this, he is pursued by mythological monsters. As he tries to find shelter, he reaches Camp Half-Blood in Staten Island. This is a place where the children of the gods and demigods live as they train to survive in a dangerous world. Here, he befriends two fellow campers Annabeth and Grover, as Percy is finally at a place where he feels he belonged. Later as he is accused of stealing Zeus’ lightning bolt, he only has some days to try and find it. As if he fails to do so, an all-out war will break out between the Gods. Percy teams up with his new friends in his search into the Underworld, only to later arrive back in New York for a final battle. Also Read: How To Watch Loki Online On Disney Plus?
Percy Jackson Open Casting Call Announced
Just like the original books, Rick Riordan wants the new TV series to also have a 12-year-old boy star as Percy Jackson. For this, he has announced open auditions for the titular character of Percy Jackson. The requirement is for the character is a boy who could play a 12-year-old and grow over the course of the planned five seasons. There is no specific ethnicity the Disney executives are looking into. And anyone who wants to audition can submit a self-tape. This self-tape must have the candidate performing their favorite passage from the book series. Moreover, the file should be in a .mp4 or .mov file format sent to WDT.PercyJacksonOpenCall@disney.com.
Impact of Disney Plus on Percy Jackson Adaptation
According to Rick, the budget for a single season of the Percy Jackson season would come somewhere close to that of WandaVision. WandaVision itself was a $200 million budget shows, which only points out how much Disney is willing to bet on this new series. As for the scripting, the first episode’s script has already been prepared with multiple positive reviews. Nevertheless, it may change with time before it is presented to Disney Executives. Lastly, there is no set date considering production hasn’t been on the series, but Disney Plus is looking forward to a 2022 release. Also Read: Percy Jackson TV Series: What Is It About?
