A new set photo confirms that one major Annabeth detail will be included in the Disney+ Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Disney officially greenlit the upcoming series based on Rick Riordan's novel series of the same name in January. Led by showrunners Jonathan E. Steinberg and Dan Shotz, Percy Jackson and the Olympians stars Walker Scobell as Percy, Leah Sava Jeffries as Annabeth, and Aryan Simhadri as Grover alongside a supporting cast that includes Virginia Kull, Glynn Turman, Jason Mantzoukas, and Megan Mullally. Riordan is also involved with show as a writer and executive producer.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians follows its titular 12-year-old protagonist after he discovers he is the demigod son of Poseidon. He is then thrust into a dangerous quest involving gods and monsters with his friends Grover and Annabeth. While some fans were wary of Disney+ adapting Riordan's books due to 20th Century Fox's disappointing movie adaptations, the author has been keeping his fans regularly updated on the production's progress and reassuring them that the new series will be faithful to the books. Riordan's words were proven true when Disney released a teaser trailer for Percy Jackson and the Olympians at the D23 Expo that featured Scobell speaking Percy's famous opening lines from the first book, The Lightning Thief.
Now, Riordan's latest update spells more good news for Percy Jackson and the Olympians fans. In the latest post on his blog, Rick Riordan shared photos from Jeffries' birthday celebration on set that revealed Annabeth's constant Yankees cap in her pocket, a major detail from the books, and praised Jeffries for her work as the character. Check out Riordan's words and the photo below:
“If you look closely, you’ll see Leah’s ANNABETH CHASE director’s chair, and perhaps a certain fashion accessory Annabeth is never without. This young lady is so, so talented. She is Annabeth to a tee, and when you see her in the show, you will immediately understand why. We are delighted and lucky to have her in the PJO family. Happy birthday!”
How the Percy Jackson Show Is Getting Annabeth Right
While the previous two Percy Jackson movies were disappointing to fans and Riordan, Disney seems intent on properly portraying the novels and avoiding the movies' biggest mistake: ignoring the character's personal arcs. A large part of Annabeth's personality in the book series revolves around her distance from her parents and her desire to prove herself, and Annabeth's cap, which was a gift from her mother Athena, often signals both feelings. Not only is the cap a magical tool that helps Annabeth often on her quests, but it also usually appears when she is forced to be vulnerable. It was also notably absent from both movies, so including the cap is a good step in the right direction for Disney.
With important details like Annabeth's cap and Percy's opening monologue already confirmed, it will be interesting to see how the rest of Percy Jackson and the Olympians turns out. While Riordan previously mentioned creating original scenes for the show, so far, each new update almost seems to be pulled straight from The Lightning Thief's pages. The production still has plenty of work left, but based on what Riordan says, fans can expect Percy Jackson and the Olympians to truly bring the books to life.
Source: Rick Riordan