We might be a long way from the release date of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, but if it’s up to the people involved in the production, we can look forward to regular updates on the series. Today, series star Aryan Simhadri (Cheaper by the Dozen) posted a photo on Instagram that suggest the new kids at Camp Half-blood are having a good time on set. The series will chronicle the title character’s discovery that he is the demigod son of Poseidon, which leads him to attend a summer camp with other kids like him.
Simhadri posted the photo in celebration of Percy Jackson's birthday, and congratulated co-star Walker Scobell (The Adam Project) on celebrating the fictional event for the first time in character. Also in the photo is the third member of the team: Leah Sava Jeffries (Beast), who is set to play the boys’ best friend, Annabeth Chase. Jeffries recently had to deal with her share of Internet attacks and racist comments due to some “fans” of the series being angry at the fact that a beloved character is now going to be played by a Black girl. In the film series, Annabeth was played by Alexandra Daddario (The White Lotus).
Simhadri will play friendly satyr Grover Underwood. We still don’t have many details from the upcoming adaptation, but novel series author Rick Riordan – who is monitoring production closely and is actively involved in its production – has guaranteed fans that the series is shaping up to stay true to the source material. The 2010 and 2014 movies highly disappointed fans due to the disregard with the books' storylines, which ended up resulting in the franchise cancellation in theaters due to unsatisfying box office numbers.
Recently, original live-action Percy Jackson star Logan Lerman (Bullet Train) commented on the story getting another chance on a streaming platform and revealed he’s “really excited and curious” to watch it. He also stated that having Riordan directly involved is a cause for celebration. For us not involved in production, Riordan’s involvement is also great, because the author frequently takes to his own website to provide updates on whichever projects he’s working on. The author also posted Simhadri’s picture in a blog post today, and shared his excitement about the trio of protagonists:
“Every day, they are bringing the fire to their performances, working hard to make this show the best ever, but they also seem to be having the time of their lives, which is awesome to see! It’s a true privilege to watch them work every day. I understand there may be birthday cake on set later today. You can be sure I will find it, if so!”
The upcoming series will also feature Virginia Kull, Glynn Turman, Jason Mantzoukas, Megan Mullally, Charlie Bushnell and Timm Sharp. There is currently no release date scheduled for Percy Jackson and the Olympians, but Riordan let fans know that Disney+ is eyeing an early 2024 release date.
You can check out the blog post on Rick Riordan’s website and Simhadri’s post below: