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Percy Jackson fangirls, it's our time to shine. ⚔️ If you grew up dreaming of Camp Half-Blood and godly parents, you've prob been dreaming of this true-to-book TV show adaptation for years. And whether you're a lifelong fan of our fave demigod hero or new to the Greek mythology-inspired series, the Percy Jackson and the Olympians Disney+ show is bound to be your next obsession.

GL sat down with Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson book series and co-producer of the show, along with his co-producer—and wife—Becky Riordan.

Girls' Life: OK, so fans all over are *so* excited for the show, whether they've been in it from Day One or are just coming into the fandom. What has this multi-level excitement for the show been like for you?

Rick Riordan: Kind of unreal. You'd think we're used to it, but we're not.

Becky Riordan: It's surprising in some ways and not surprising in others. We've basically grown up with the fans when we started in 2005 with The Lightning Thief. A lot of fans have come along with us on that journey—now they're in their twenties and some are even starting families of their own.

GL: The books started as a family journey—with you, Rick, inspired by your son's struggles with ADHD and dyslexia to create the character of Percy. What's it like working together as producers on the show?

Rick: I'm just sorry we haven't started doing this sooner. Becky is very good at executive producing. She has such a good eye and a good heart. I've known that, since she's always advised my books and been such a partner in the success of the books. But it's been a lot of fun turning our combined efforts into more of a team sport, more of a collaboration.

Becky: Right! Instead of me swooping in at the end and reading or acting as an editor after you've already written the book. 

GL: Speaking of success, the Percy Jackson and Olympians trailer broke 84 million views in ten days when it came out. Did you sense from the beginning how big this would become?

Rick: I think 83 million of those were me personally.

GL: The other million was definitely me.

Becky: There's been a clamor for an adaption for a long time, since around 2010. So I think the steam is built up and it's ready to explode. 

Rick: There was demand for an adaptation that could really do the books justice, that could take its time to develop the characters and give readers the experience of seeing the book brought to life in a faithful and loving way.

But we hope that if people have never heard of Percy Jackson before and they're just tuning into Disney+, they're also going to find a really fun seat-of-your-pants adventure with all kinds of great monsters and heroes that you can root for.

GL: Do you have a favorite moment from on set?

Becky: One of my favorite things is when things go wrong. I don't think we get to see this in the behind-the-scenes or anything—hopefully at some point they'll show it—but in episode one they're doing a school scene. Mr. Brunner sends Percy away and we have a vehicle that's supposed to take Percy back to New York. You could hear the engine crank and crank and crank and it just wouldn't start.

So Walker Scobell [who plays the title role of Percy Jackson] hysterically walks out the driveway and says, “I'm gonna walk back to New York.” They caught this all on film and everybody is in hysterics. It was a perfect Percy moment.

Rick: For me, anytime I get to interact with our young actors is fabulous. I love them to death and they're just so amazing.

Walker got into the habit of sneaking up behind me when I was sitting in the producers' tent. He would just wait to see how long it took for me to realize that he was looking over my shoulder. So I managed to avoid a heart attack. Thankfully.

GL: You have some big names in the cast, like Lin-Manuel Miranda and Adam Copeland. Did either of you ever get starstruck working with famous cast members?

Rick: I don't tend to get starstruck around film stuff, I guess because in my own much smaller way I get what it's like to be a public figure. Certainly not at the movie star level, but I understand what it is to have a public persona, then to be a real human being. When I'm around our stars, I try to be as real with them as I can. Treat them like people, not, "What can I get from this person?" Just let them be themselves, ask them how they are and thank them for being there.

GL: What advice do you have for girls who dream of writing books that will one day turn into a TV show?

Rick: I would start with, try as best as you can not to think that many steps ahead. Because here I am, 59 years old, and I'm just now seeing that after working in publishing for 20 years. It can be a long process.

Maybe it won't be for the young writers out there who are reading this. But the first thing you need to do is just write the story that you would want to read. What is that book? What is that story that you haven't seen in the world that you're dying to see? And then just practice, practice, practice. Don't give up. Keep writing every day if you can, if you can't, that's ok. Give yourself a break, but just keep at it and don't give up.

Stream Percy Jackson and the Olympians starting Dec. 20 on Disney+!

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Top image: PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS - "Episode 103” (Disney/David Bukach). Slider image: PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS - "Episode 102” (Disney/David Bukach)

by Ally Coy | 12/20/2023