After two successful ‘Percy Jackson’ films, the new ‘Percy Jackson And The Olympians’ is set to stream on Disney+ Hotstar as a television series. In a recent interview, the cast shed light on how the series has got diversity right.
In an exclusive interview with Hindustan Times, the cast revealed how they got into the skin of the character that was written ages ago. Leah Sava Jeffries, who will be playing the role of Annabeth Chase, talked about the backlash she received because people had imagined her character as a white person. She said, “I think that backlash happened because no one saw me play Annabeth yet. But now, everything is done, everything has come together well, and I can't wait for everyone to see it. Because people just judge on the basis of what they see, what they hear, what they feel without actually waiting for it.”
Leah also added, “The stuff that came to me and what people said was really a motivational thing. I took into consideration all of that and thought, ‘Okay, these people are saying all these things. Let’s show them they're wrong.’”
Aryan Simhadri who will be playing the role of Grover Underwood praised the maker’s decision to make the film more inclusive and diverse. In the same interview, he said, “I don't speak for Leah obviously. But the surge in diversity and the time, money, and genuine effort being put into finding talented creators and casting people of colour have been incredible in these last couple of years.”
The series will have eight episodes. It is based on the book written by Rick Riordan. He has teamed up with Jonathan E. Steinberg to create this series. ‘Percy Jackson And The Olympians’ is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
