Walker Scobell in ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians.’
Disney/David Bukach
Disney+ is making a return trip to Camp Half-Blood.
The streamer has ordered a second season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, its series based on the best-selling novels by Rick Riordan. Disney announced the pickup during its quarterly earnings call Wednesday, a week after the show’s first season concluded.
Season two will adapt the second of Riordan’s novels, The Sea of Monsters, which sends Percy (Walker Scobell) and some of his fellow demigods on an oceangoing quest to retrieve the Golden Fleece.
“Rich in magic, wonder, adventure and heart, Percy Jackson and the Olympians captivated the imaginations of viewers of all ages everywhere,” Disney Branded Television president Ayo Davis said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to embark on an exciting new quest and a season two with Rick Riordan, our fantastic partners at 20th Television, and the exceptional ensemble of cast and creative talent that bring this story to life.”
Added Riordan, “I can’t wait to bring the next season of Percy Jackson to Disney+. Raise anchors. Hoist the mainsail. All hands on deck, demigods. We’re heading for the Sea of Monsters!”
Percy Jackson and the Olympians had a solid start in late December, with Disney+ reported 13.3 million worldwide “views” — calculated by dividing the total viewing time by running time — over six days for the show’s first episode (which also streamed on Hulu in the United States), and nearly doubling that figure (to 26.2 million views) after three weeks. The series also ranked among the top 10 original shows in Nielsen’s streaming charts or each of its first three weeks (figures for later weeks aren’t available yet), becoming the biggest launch for a Disney+ series not associated with Marvel or Star Wars.
Reviews have largely been positive as well, with many of them noting the show’s much more faithful adaptation of the first book in Riordan’s series, The Lightning Thief, than the 2010 feature film that many of the book’s avid fans (and the author) disdained.
Riordan and Jonathan Steinberg co-created the series, with Steinberg and Dan Shotz serving as showrunners. They executive produce with Rebecca Riordan; The Gotham Group’s Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell and D.J. Goldberg; Bert Salke; directors James Bobin and Anders Engström; and Jim Rowe, Monica Owusu-Breen and Jet Wilkinson.
