Disney Plus has found the actor who’ll play the titular Percy Jackson in its small-screen adaptation of Rick Riordan’s popular book series. Deadline reports that Walker Scobell, who’s probably best known for starring in Netflix’s The Adam Project alongside Ryan Reynolds, will play the 12-year-old demigod on the TV series.
Riordan’s books tell the story of Percy, a young boy who discovers he’s the son of Poseidon, the ancient Greek god of the sea. As his powers grow, threats emerge that threaten young Percy, and he’s forced to attend Camp Half-Blood a place that trains demigods like him to use their powers.
The first book of the series, ‘The Lightning Thief,’ sees Zeus’s lightning bolt, the most powerful weapon in the universe, stolen. This prompts Percy and his satyr friend Grover to go on an adventure to steal the lightning bolt back from Hades, who they suspect of stealing it in the hope of stopping a brewing war between the Olympian gods.
The Lightning Thief and the second book in the series The Sea of Monsters were previously adapted into fantasy movies by 20th Century Fox, but the new series is not connected to those films.
Riordan and Jonathan E. Steinberg – who co-created the drama series Jericho – are slated to write the first episode with James Bobin set to direct.