Logan Lerman Likely Not to Return as Percy Jackson in Disney+ Series
The Percy Jackson Disney+ series is officially on the hunt for its Percy. But will Logan Lerman return to the role? While casting has only just begun, there’s a clear reason why Lerman likely won’t reprise his role as the demigod.
Is Logan Lerman in ‘Percy Jackson’?
Lerman played the teenage son of Poseidon in 2010’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief and 2013’s Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. Lerman’s Percy was well received well with fans, but the movies at large weren’t.
Rick Riordan wrote the Percy Jackson books and is heavily involved in the Disney+ series. The writer hasn’t seen the film adaptations because of how much he hated the scripts. (He didn’t have much say in their development.) Fans have been hoping the series would get a better adaptation one day, but even Riordan feared that was a hopeless dream. As he wrote on an update to his blog on March 27:
“For over 10 years, I considered a new Percy Jackson adaptation pretty much impossible, certainly not with me being involved. Then in October 2019, as Fox was being absorbed by Disney, Becky and I saw an opportunity. We really started pushing, meeting with people in Hollywood, banging drums, waving our arms, etc., and with the help of our amazing film agent Ellen Goldsmith-Vein and her team, we started to see some very slow progress.”
‘Percy Jackson’ Disney+ casting call
Disney announced it was adapting the books into a TV series in May 2020. Lerman reacted to the news on Twitter by recognizing the reputation of the two movies.
“Excited to see this!” he said. “Hope it gets the adaptation the books deserve. Congrats @rickriordan.”
Riordan never held the quality of the films against the actors cast in them. According to Entertainment Weekly, Riordan tweeted in June 2020:
“I still have not seen the movies, and don’t plan on ever doing so. I judge them from having read the scripts, because I care most about the story. I certainly have nothing against the very talented actors. Not their fault. I’m just sorry they got dragged into that mess.”
Ever since the Percy Jackson Disney+ series was announced, Lerman fans have hoped he would be cast. But the odds of him playing Percy again are next to none. That’s because, in the first book, Percy is only 12 years old. He’s just 16 in the final installment. The open casting call on Riordan’s site confirmed they’re looking for an actor who fits Percy’s age in the books.
Will Logan Lerman play Poseidon in ‘Percy Jackson’ on Disney+?
The April 27 update also revealed they’re open to casting actors of all demographics in the role. This age distinction is a positive sign Riordan’s adaptation will be loyal to the books, but it also rules out any possibility of Lerman (who’s 29 years old) returning to the role. He said:
“We are looking for an actor who can ‘play 12.’ That allows for a range in the actual age of the actor, but the goal is to stay true to the original story and have Percy’s character age from 12 to 16 over the course of the TV series, assuming of course we are lucky enough to make all five seasons. That will depend on viewership on Disney+, which is where all of you can help!”
However, fans are hoping he will be cast as Poseidon, Percy’s father.
“Casting for Percy Jackson began? I am once again asking for Logan Lerman to play Poseidon,” one fan tweeted.
“LOGAN LERMAN IS OUR POSEIDON,” wrote another.
For his part, Lerman told Access in May 2020 he’d be willing to appear in the series if there’s a role he’d fit. He said:
“Yeah, I’m open to anything. I’m curious to see what’s going to happen with it. I’m just glad that Rick Riordan, the writer, is in control. It seems like he’s in control or he has the last say. I’m not sure how much say he had in the Fox productions that we did way back when 10 years ago or so now. I hope that they get good scripts together. That’s really the next step. They mention an announcement, but the truth is it’s a whole process of development where you have to get good scripts together and get it green lit by the network or the streaming service, Disney+. I’d be curious to see how it comes along, and if there’s a good role for me, and those things, and I’m right for it, then of course I would consider it. Yeah, that’d be awesome.”
Riordan’s announcement said casting decisions about other characters won’t be made until Percy has been cast. News of the casting call made Lerman trend on Twitter the same day, indicating high interest in his returning to the franchise.
