Percy Jackson and the Olympians is an exciting saga about an ordinary boy who discovers his true identity as a demigod. Percy Jackson is the son of Poseidon, as he learns when he finds himself at Camp Half-Blood, a training camp for fellow demigods. But all is not well in the land of the Olympians. Over the course of the series, Percy gets caught up in many quests and misadventures along with other demigods and some of the most recognizable figures in Greek mythology.
Rick Riordan began writing fiction on the side while teaching full time, and his career as an author took off with Percy Jackson's debut. He went on to write the Heroes of Olympus series, along with many more middle-grade adventure novels that reimagine figures from various mythologies in the contemporary world. Riordan also founded Rick Riordan Presents, an imprint that aims to elevate exciting and diverse #OwnVoices stories based on cherished mythologies and legends from around the world.
With his meteoric success, it's no wonder that the Percy Jackson series has been adapted into two movies and a Broadway musical, and is currently in the works to become a Disney+ series. While we wait for that release, we’ve taken the time to revisit the film adaptations and the audiobooks alike to give curious listeners the lowdown on the differences between the Percy Jackson books and the movies.
Warning: The following article contains spoilers for the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.
What happens in the Percy Jackson series?
In the first book, The Lightning Thief, Percy Jackson discovers he's a demigod when a Minotaur attacks him, killing his mother. He's sent to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for other demigods on Long Island, where he discovers he is the son of Poseidon and his best friend Grover is a satyr. He also meets Annabel, the daughter of Athena. But Percy isn't at Camp Half-Blood for long when Zeus accuses him of stealing his Master Bolt. Although Percy isn't the thief, he must embark on a quest to find Zeus's weapon in order to clear his name. This journey takes Percy, Grover, and Annabel across the country and into the Underworld, where they meet Hades—and where Percy hopes to save his mother. Along the way, they face numerous mythological beasts and find the actual thief, all the while uncovering a plot to spark war among the Olympians and Titans.
In The Sea of Monsters, the second book in the series, Camp Half-Blood and all the demigods are in danger when Thalia's Tree, which protects the camp from being discovered by the wrong people and beings, is poisoned. The only way to save the tree is for someone to retrieve the Golden Fleece, and the camp decides to send a demigod on a quest to do so. But Percy is more concerned about Grover, who left in search of the god Pan and has been captured by a cyclops. Percy, Annabel, and newcomer Tyson set out to rescue Grover, traversing the sea of monsters (located in the Bermuda Triangle) and encountering many mythological creatures, and a few rivals and former friends, along the way. They're able to rescue Grover, find the Golden Fleece, and return to Camp Half-Blood, where they resurrect Thalia herself, revealing that she had been turned into a tree by Zeus.
How do the Percy Jackson movies differ from the books?
The movie versions of these stories differ from the books in both small and significant ways, in part because film is a completely different medium. Here’s how the books stack up to the movies.
Major Differences
Percy and his friends are high schoolers in the movies. Percy is 16 in The Lightning Thief on screen, while in the books he is only 12 at the start of the series.
The movie starts with the clash between Poseidon and Zeus, and sees Percy attacked by a Fury on a class trip rather than on summer break with his mom.
In the film, Percy is lured from Camp Half-Blood after Hades gives him a vision of his mother, and Hades claims that the Minotaur kidnapped his mother to trade it for the lightning bolt that Zeus is missing. In the books, Percy embarks on his quest after he's accused of stealing Zeus's lightning bolt.
The creatures that Percy faces off against in The Lightning Thief are different in the book and screen versions. In the book, he takes on the Minotaur, Echidna, Procrustes, and various Furies; he also encounters Cerberus but doesn't fight him. In the movie, he only faces the Minotaur, one Fury, the Hydra, and three hellhounds.
Tyson gives Percy a shield in the second book, but it’s instead Luke who gives Percy a shield in the first movie.
Persephone appears in the first movie as a hostage of Hades, despite the fact that it's summer. In the book, she's correctly depicted as being with her mother.
Ares plays a dominant role in the book series, but is barely mentioned at all in the movies and only appears briefly in one scene.
In the books, since Percy and Annabel are only 12 at the start, their relationship is more focused on friendship and teamwork than romance—although later on in the series, they do develop feelings for one another. In the movies, Percy and Annabel's attraction takes center stage, and they kiss after the climactic battle scene in the first movie.
In the books, owning and using technology is dangerous as it attracts monsters. Therefore, none of the characters have much use for it. However, in the movies Percy owns an iPod touch, and using the reflection of the screen is what allows him to fight Medusa. Annabel also uses an iPad in the second movie.
Percy struggles to control his powers in the books—at least, in the beginning. This makes sense, as he isn't aware of them and it takes some time to hone his abilities. In the movies, however, Percy seems able to wield his powers rather easily, and there is no indication of his struggle or the fact that his powers have worked against him. Instead, the only sign of his abilities is that he can hold his breath underwater for a really long time.
Percy never dons the flying shoes that Luke gives him in The Lightning Thief book—which is a good thing because they're a trick to take Percy out of the fight. In the movie, however, Percy uses the flying shoes to fight against his enemies.
Hades is a power-hungry enemy in the movies; in the books, Hades is more apathetic to the Olympians and doesn't actively wish Percy harm.
The Oracle of Delphi is present in the first book but not the first movie. However, her presence is written into the second movie.
Clarisse is a bully from the very beginning of the book series, appearing in The Lightning Thief. However, she doesn't appear in the first movie and only makes an entrance in the second movie, where she's depicted as a new camper.
Because the film aged the characters, when Percy receives the prophecy from the Oracle of Delphi in the movie, it's supposed to come true by the time he's 20—not by 16, like in the book series, as Percy is already 16 in the first movie.
A number of characters appear in the second movie that don't show up until later books. For example, The Sea of Monsters movie features Kronos, Silena Beauregard, and Ethan Nakamura, even though they don't appear in the second book at all.
Circe appears in The Lightning Thief book, along with her maidens, as one of the challenges that Percy and Annabel have to face. However, in the movie she doesn't appear at all, though “Circe Land” is the name of an abandoned amusement park full of danger in the film.
Annabel learns of her fatal flaw in the second book when she hears the sirens. In the movie, however, Annabel's fatal flaw is not addressed, although the sirens do appear as background characters in a coffee shop.
Though this difference may be rather small, it’s a curious one. In the book series, drinking nectar can heal you—but it's wise to not drink too much because doing so may result in spontaneous combustion. But in the movies, nectar is not nearly as powerful and viewed as just another beverage of the gods, like coffee.
Key Similarities
In both the books and the movies, Percy Jackson has ADHD and dyslexia. It’s revealed that his dyslexia is a result of his inherent ability to read Greek, and his ADHD is due to his innate battlefield reflexes. Things that humans see as weaknesses are actually strengths for Percy, once his true heritage is revealed to him.
Grover is still Percy's best friend and a satyr, as well as his protector. Percy still meets Annabel, daughter of Athena, at Camp Half-Blood, although she doesn't talk much about her family in the movies.
Percy's journey takes him across the country, encountering various mythological creatures, although his stops and the various settings differ somewhat. However, his destination is always Las Vegas, which is the portal to the Underworld.
The characters are lured into staying at the Lotus Hotel and Casino in The Lightning Thief, although the way they're lured differs between the book and the movie. In the book, the characters accept a green credit card that traps them there. In the movie, the characters eat lotus flower snacks.
Annabel is a great fighter, and an asset to Percy in their various battles.
Luke is still the thief after all, although the logistics of how he stole the Master Bolt differ. Nevertheless, in both the books and movies, his actions result in impending war for the Olympians.
The second book and second movie both involve Thalia's Tree and the pursuit of the Golden Fleece.
Luke has a ship called Princess Andromeda in The Lightning Bolt. In the book, it's a giant cruise ship full of mythological monsters. In the movie, it's merely a large yacht—although it’s still very much filled with monsters!
Hermes still gives Percy, Annabel, and Tyson some magical gifts to aid in their journey, although those gifts differ slightly between the book and movie.
Annabel is seriously hurt in battle in The Sea of Monsters. In the movie, she is shown to die, but is brought back to life by the Golden Fleece. In the book, she is merely severely wounded, but the Golden Fleece does heal her.
Are the Percy Jackson movies faithful to the books?
On the surface, the differences between the movies and books may not seem too drastic. But the deeper you look, the more obvious it becomes that the movies and books don't always follow the same rules, and they show different aspects of Greek mythology in different lights. Author Rick Riordan has made clear that he's not a fan of the Percy Jackson movie adaptations. In fact, he's hasn't even seen them, and he doesn't intend to. "I judge them from having read the scripts," Riordan has stated, "because I care most about the story."
Luckily, Riordan has found a new home for the Percy Jackson series at Disney+, and he plays an active role in their adaptation and development for the streaming service. Let's hope that as a result Disney+ will produce a TV show Riordan approves of and fans love too! In the meantime, there's no better time than now to get fully caught up on the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in audio.
