Percy Jackson and the Olympians has found its new Zeus.
Emmy winner Courtney B. Vance has joined the Disney+ series as the king of the Greek gods. He’ll take over the role originated by the late Lance Reddick, who played the part in season one.
“I can’t tell you how excited I am to join the extraordinary cast of Percy Jackson and the Olympians,” Vance said in a statement. “There are few moments in an actor’s career when you can honestly say that you’re about to board a series that has such a devoted fan base filled with characters beloved around the world and is based on a wildly successful book series. I know that stepping into this role of Zeus will be a memorable experience and I’ll be giving my brother, Lance Reddick, who left us way too soon, a heavenly hug.”
Season two of Percy Jackson is currently in production and slated to premiere sometime next year. Vance is one of several additions to the cast for the coming season, along with Daniel Diemer, Tamara Smart, Andra Day and guest stars Sandra Bernhard, Margaret Cho and Kristen Schaal.
The season will be based on The Sea of Monsters, the second book in author Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series. Percy (Walker Scobell) returns to Camp Half-Blood a year after the events of season one to find his world turned upside down. His friendship with Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries) is changing, he learns he has a cyclops for a brother, Grover (Aryan Simhadri) has gone missing, and camp is under siege from the forces of Kronos. Percy’s journey to set things right will take him off the map and into the deadly Sea of Monsters, where a secret fate awaits him.
Riordan executive produces season two with showrunners Jonathan E. Steinberg and Dan Shotz,Rebecca Riordan, Craig Silverstein, Bert Salke, The Gotham Group’s Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell and D.J. Goldberg, James Bobin, Jim Rowe, Albert Kim, Jason Ensler and Sarah Watson.
Vance is coming off of FX’s Grotesquerie. His recent credits also include the AMC/CW drama 61st Street, Genius: Aretha and Lovecraft Country, for which he won an Emmy in 2020.
Variety first reported the news.
English (US) ·