Just last month, the beloved Rick Riordan announced that there would be yet another adaptation of his "Percy Jackson" book series. While details have not been fully released as there has not been a lot of development yet, we know that Disney+ has taken on the weight of the series which will encompass a season of episodes this time around. Each season will be about a different book in the series, as opposed to a movie for each one, and Uncle Rick assures us that this time around he'll be more involved in the development.
Fans gave a fair mix of concern and excitement as they had been burned before when promised a solid adaptation with the 2010 movies. Unfortunately, fans have lowered their standards quite a bit on what they would hope to see as they were so disappointed the first time around. Basic mistakes left fans feeling like the true spirit of the books was completely lost from the movies, so here's to hoping the new series changes all of that. While fans, and Rick himself (who admits how much pain the movies bring him), all truly hope for something spectacular, here are just a few BASIC things fans hope are not screwed up this time around:
1. Cast children of the right age.
One of the most annoying things wrong with the "Percy Jackson" films was the fact that, in the first book, the main characters are all supposed to be kids. Percy himself was only twelve in the first book, and yet the cast that was chosen was significantly older. There is supposed to be about a year of time between each of the books, which would leave Percy around sixteen or seventeen in the very last book. However, Logan Lerman, who played Percy in the films, was seventeen when he was only filming the first one! If they had gotten through all of them, he would have been in his 20's by the time they were all complete. One thing we for sure need is "Harry Potter" style casting. Cast children that can grow up with the series, and if they're about a year or so off, that's fine - but too big of an age gap is untrue to the story.
2. Give Annabeth her blonde hair!
Annabeth Chase is one of the most iconic "Percy Jackson" characters, and one of her more iconic features is her knotted blonde locks. While Logan Lerman was a good replica of what Percy might look like, Annabeth's character was a brunette throughout the entire first movie. What's worse is that word got around that people were not happy about this aspect being overlooked, and by the second movie, Annabeth's hair was half brown-half blonde. Enough said.
3. Keep the plot the same, if not super similar, to that of the books.
Okay, this one should be super basic. Of course it is hard to make a movie adaptation and keep a lot of the book details in, but the "Percy Jackson" films completely derailed the entire plot and backstories of most of the characters and the story as a whole. (Why do you think they stopped after #2?) As sad as it is, this time around, one basic things fans are hoping for is a true representation of the characters and a similar plot.
Of course, at the end of the day, everyone is going to critique the new show in their own way based on how they drew up the book in their head. However, these are three basic things that everyone felt like they didn't even need to ask for that got screwed up the first and second time around with the first two movies... so here's to hoping that the third time's the charm.
