Percy Jackson kind of feels like it became a failed movie experiment that had potential but just took too long to develop. It could also be that the second movie just didn’t drive up the numbers the way it needed to in order to give the franchise the added ‘oomph’ that it needed to keep pushing itself forward. The first movie, as is typical, went barreling right out of the gate and made it clear that this was a new type of movie featuring the Greek gods and myths in a manner that was likely to be more amenable to young people and to challenge them but also entertain them in ways that was meant to be fun and engaging. The second movie for some reason just didn’t manage to grab hold of that same magic and it’s pretty obvious that it failed to wow the audience in the same manner for various reasons. But then maybe Percy Jackson, as well as many other series, would just be better off as a TV series instead of trying to make it a little too big. Christian Holub of Entertainment Weekly has more to say on this matter. Obviously this isn’t a universal idea as movie series such as Harry Potter would choose to disagree. But considering that Percy Jackson didn’t take off as well as the Potterverse it’s likely that a series was bound to be the best way to go for a number of reasons. At this time it does sound as though Disney+ is planning on bringing such a series to their network, though like all productions it’s an idea at this point and not much else.
As Joe Otterson of Variety has put it there doesn’t appear to be any belief that anyone from the movies will be showing up in the series, which is probably for the best. The author of the books is actually pretty excited to see his creation put into a series that might be able to do more with the stories than the movies did. To be fair the movies did make a good chunk of money, but they also received a lot of mixed reviews as well, especially given that the second movie has been all but forgotten in favor of the first. In a big way it does have to do with the cast and who was showcased the first time around, as actors such as Sean Bean and Pierce Brosnan, since this did make a big difference in how many people were interested in watching. Logan Lerman was still new enough to the big screen that many people were getting used to him, and despite putting in a solid performance the movie was more of an oddity to many people that some found amusing and even witty while others just found kind of awkward and odd. There are plenty of people that fully enjoy movies that are based around Greek mythology and will simply enjoy the stories, but there are also many folks that will sit and nitpick over mythology, which is kind of ironic really since they’ll also argue that it’s no more real than the movie.
As a TV series though there’s a lot more versatility thank to the time extension that’s typically given since it’s easier to cover more material in an episodic series than there is in a two-hour movie that’s limited to how much it can display in the time that’s given. This has been a source of frustration with a lot of people over the years since TV series have often seen to be less popular and more cheaply made while the desire to see one’s work on the big screen means more money, more prestige, and a lot more recognition. Personally I’d rather see my stories on the small screen if only because TV tends to deliver more of the main points of the story without glossing over plot points that might be important down the line. But hey, that’s me.
Percy Jackson’s story is one that has a lot of moving parts to it and a lot of development that could take place with the right director behind the camera. Who will be cast in the roles of the main characters has yet to be seen since as of yet there’s not a lot of information to hand out to the willing public just yet. Julia Alexander of The Verge has more to say on the subject. It does sound as though there might be some information, but those that are controlling it are keeping it close to the vest right now and are likely going to maintain this stance until they’re certain that they have enough to really start teasing the audience with what might be coming. Plus, the shutdown is still in effect so it’s easy to think that there’s not as much to tell as one might think. Soon hopefully there will be more development on this and many other projects.
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