Percy Jackson TV Show Casting Hints At A Big Zeus Change

The Disney+ Percy Jackson series has cast its Zeus, and the actor whose playing the King of the Gods hints that the show will make a major change.

The Disney+ Percy Jackson TV show has already cast its pantheon of gods, hinting at a big change for the King of the Gods, Zeus. The series has cast actor Lance Reddick as its Zeus, with the beloved actor taking over for the actor who played Zeus in the Percy Jackson movies, Sean Bean. Although the Disney+ Percy Jackson TV show seems like it will be more faithful to the original books than its movie predecessor, the casting of Lance Reddick as Zeus shows that the series could make a massive change.

Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson book series follows the titular demigod as he learns about his mythological origins while training with other demigods at Camp Half-Blood. Initially, Percy Jackson was adapted into a poorly-received movie franchise, with the series being cut short after only its second entry, 2013’s Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. The upcoming Disney+ show has promised to fix the mistakes of the Percy Jackson movies, with Rick Riordan’s involvement being a good sign for the show. While characters like Annabeth may be closer to their novel counterparts, the show’s version of Zeus may be a different story.

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Reddick’s Casting Hints At A Different Zeus In Percy Jackson’s TV Show

Lance Reddick is a great actor, but his typical typecast is far from the characterization of Zeus in the Percy Jackson novels. In the book series, Zeus is hot-headed, jealous, and rash, with the loud King of the Gods’ fatal flaw being his narcissism. Zeus is very accusatory, quickly pointing the finger at his brothers when his Master Bolt goes missing, a decision that has severe consequences. On top of being boastful and quick to anger, Zeus is also incredibly hedonistic. Zeus is known for sleeping around, with the god having all kinds of children that he abandons.

Disney+’s Percy Jackson reboot has cast an actor who is the exact opposite of many of these traits in the role of Zeus. Lance Reddick is typically known for playing intense but quiet characters, with his reserved performances being very different from Zeus’ loud and angry characterization. Reddick’s typecast can be seen in his roles as Daniels in The Wire, Albert Wesker in Resident Evil, Abaddon in Lost, and especially as Charon in the John Wick franchise. Lance Reddick hasn’t played anything like Zeus before, meaning that the Disney+ series may be presenting a new take on the character.

Lance Reddick Could Still Play Percy Jackson’s Authentic Zeus

Although it may not seem like it, Lance Reddick could still play a version of Zeus that is accurate to the books. The Disney+ Percy Jackson show has already cast Hades and Poseidon, who will be played by Jay Duplass and Toby Stephens respectively, and it seems like both of these characters will be presented fairly accurately. It’d be weird to only change up one of The Big Three, making it unlikely that Zeus will be wildly different despite his casting.

Lance Reddick may not be known for playing characters like Zeus, but that doesn’t mean he can’t. Reddick is an incredibly talented actor that should have no problem trying something new. Actors often give their best performances when breaking out of their typecast, and hopefully this remains true for Reddick’s performance as Zeus. While Percy Jackson is still a while away, Zeus is just another sign that the Disney+ series will seriously improve on the movies.

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