Summary

Collider’s Hannah Hunt talks with Walker Scobell, Leah Sava Jeffries, and Daniel Diemer for Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2.

In Season 2 of the Disney+ series, Percy, Annabeth, and Tyson forge into an unlikely family built on earned trust.

In this interview, the trio discuss new flashbacks, changes to their characters from the books, and the true meaning of heroism.

Season 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians throws Percy (Walker Scobell), Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), and Tyson (Daniel Diemer) into a new kind of quest — one that demands trust long before it earns it. Across the first four episodes, the show reshapes the trio into an unexpected family unit, forcing them to navigate danger, loyalty, and the emotional growing pains that come with standing up for one another. It’s a dynamic that deepens the familiar story while letting each character evolve in surprising and heartfelt ways. To explore these relationships ahead of Season 2’s two-episode December 10 premiere, Collider’s Hannah Hunt sat down with the cast to talk about building trust on screen, the adaptation choices that surprised them, and the season’s escalating questions about what heroism actually means. From flashback revelations to shifting character chemistry, the trio breaks down how Season 2 adapts Rick Riordan’s The Sea of Monsters and changes their characters, and what those changes reveal about the heart of the story.
Building Trust and a New Family Dynamic

“It seemed like we kind of found each other over the progression and the arc of the characters.”

COLLIDER: So, we will jump straight into Season 2. I’ve seen the first four episodes and I’m loving it so far. Season 2 pushes Percy, Annabeth, and Tyson into a new kind of family unit. How did you approach building that bond, especially when trust doesn’t necessarily come easily between the three of them? WALKER SCOBELL: I don’t think it’s something that happens in a way that’s not organic. You know what I mean? Throughout the quest, they kind of just learn to trust each other to survive, and then that’s how that bond forms over time and through a lot of dangerous situations. DANIEL DIEMER: Yeah, and so much of that’s also, I think, the writing. The writing makes it very clear what the relationship is. You know, going into the scene, how it’s going to progress. And so, I think, again, you each approach it individually and then together, hopefully, the dance works. And yeah, as it progressed, it seemed like we kind of found each other over the progression and the arc of the characters.
Book-to-Screen Changes and Adaptation Surprises

“I think it’s a really good story to tell for people who haven’t read it.”

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2Image via Disney+

What surprised you most about how the script adapted your character’s journey on the page into something new on screen? LEAH SAVA JEFFRIES: That’s a really good question. I can make a good connection in my head, I think, but it actually wasn’t even in the books. But I want to say, no one has seen the flashbacks yet, but it has to do with Annabeth, but it’s not in the book, but it is kind of her story kind of is told in the books a little bit. But I’m really happy for everyone’s reaction, or just how the audience feels about the flashbacks, because some people, I keep having to tell myself this, that not everyone has read the books when they watch this show. I have to make sure that I still don’t overdo it too much to where everyone’s like, “Yeah, we knew that was going to happen.” But at the same time, I still have to do enough to where the fans could know what it was all about without having to read it. You know what I’m saying? So being able to see the adaptation of the script from the books about Annabeth’s backstory and see it come to action and stuff and see Marissa play it, I think it’s a really good story to tell for people who haven’t read it. Absolutely. I will say that the flashback sequences are some of my favorites from the season so far. Walker, Daniel, anything to add? DIEMER: For me, there were very few surprises. I think that they did such a great job of capturing everything that I was hoping was going to be on the page with Tyson, and then just put the pressure on myself to hopefully deliver what they’d given me. But yeah, I think that they did a really great job with honoring who he was and building out his world. SCOBELL: I think the one thing that they may have changed a little bit from the book, at least in terms of Percy and Annabeth’s relationship, is they kind of took out this awkwardness that started around book two and ended at the end of book three. Not took it out, but they transformed it into something that’s less of the classic boy-awkward-around-girl and it’s more that we get ourselves into awkward situations, like at the beginning of the season. I really like that change. It’s much more fun to play instead of just, like, “Oh, it’s a girl, I’m awkward around her.” You know what I mean? JEFFRIES: Really quick connection, also, on that is it’s also because if you watch it, we always talk about, like, “We’re going to have a talk about this. This is not done. We’re going to come back to this,” and then we never come back to it. And I think that’s what also kind of gives us that little awkwardness, because it’s like we’re always up on some type of cliffhanger between the two. It never finishes, really, you know? So it’s like people are thinking, “Oh my gosh, this might be the climax of it.” And then, it doesn’t go. Does that make sense? Absolutely.

Related

‘Percy Jackson’ Season 2 Isn’t About Monsters — It’s About Choices, Says Rick Riordan [Exclusive]

Riordan breaks down why Season 2’s real battles are moral ones.

Redefining Heroism and the Emotional Cost of Doing the Right Thing

“His fatal flaw is that he would die protecting his friends.”

Percy-Jackson-and-the-Olympians-featureImage via Disney+

One final question for the three of you. We’re going to build on a quote that is said in Episode 1 of Season 2 by Sally. We’re talking about how heroism is standing up for others. This comes at a real emotional cost oftentimes. How does that shift your character’s idea of what it means to be a hero, especially when the right choice isn’t always the easy one? DIEMER: It’s a great question. SCOBELL: Yeah, geez. That’s a great question. Thank you! JEFFRIES: I don’t think you ever know that you’re the hero until it’s done. Does that make sense? Obviously, you’ve got powers, so superhero — yes, yes, yes — but not all heroes also do good. I’m not saying it turns them into a villain, but not everyone completes the mission. So I feel like you don’t really realize that you’re the hero until it’s completed. Once the quest was done, and I did it with everyone, or Annabeth, that’s when it became that heroism, like, “Yay! We saved the day!” DIEMER: I think with Tyson, there’s obviously a lot of things that are different from the typical kind of hero in terms of personality and characteristics. But I think the one thing that sits really, really naturally for him is exactly that. I think there really isn’t the same sort of conflict that a lot of characters that I’ve had to play in the past or that I’ve seen on screen have had, of “What is the right thing to do?” He just kind of feels that, and he goes with it automatically. There’s no questioning. Whether or not it comes at a personal cost for him or not, he just goes straight for it. So it was a very much more simplistic kind of path of that, which almost made it more difficult because then the normal kind of nuance of the complexity of making decisions just wasn’t there. So, we define complexity in different aspects, but he’s just so completely there for everybody else. Very, very selfless in his actions. SCOBELL: What always made me super love Percy and super interested in him is that he’s not like the classic hero in the way that he would sacrifice one person to save a million. I mean, maybe if it came to that situation, he would, but his fatal flaw is that he would die protecting his friends. So it’s like, if he were forced to do something that’s not great in order to save his friend, he would do it, and that’s what always made me super interested in his story, was that he’s not the classic do-what’s-right hero in that way. Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2 premieres on Disney+ on December 10.

Release Date

December 19, 2023

Network

Disney+

Showrunner

Jonathan E. Steinberg, Dan Shotz

Writers

Joe Tracz, Andrew Miller

Walker Scobell

Percy Jackson

Leah Sava Jeffries

Annabeth Chase

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