Percy Jackson & The Olympians Season 3's Shift In Tone Explained

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Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 2 poster with Percy, Annabeth, and Grover Credit: Disney+

Published Jan 24, 2026, 7:19 PM EST

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The finale of Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 2 was filled with nail-biting drama and unexpected twists for viewers. Now, Walker Scobell, who portrays the titular character, has revealed how season 3 will be different from the first two installments.

Percy (Scobell), Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), and Grover (Aryan Simhadri) lead Camp Half-Blood’s demigods into a battle against Luke (Charlie Bushnell) and his team, who are attempting to resurrect the titan Kronos. The climactic fight concludes with Clarisse (Dior Goodjohn) completing her journey, and she uses the Golden Fleece to heal Thalia’s tree. However, it did more than repair the ancient tree it also resurrected Thalia.

While The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan ends with Thalia remaining a tree, Disney+'s Percy Jackson and the Olympians reviving her allows her character and the broader mythology of the Olympians to grow. Viewers also learned that Thalia didn't turn into a tree because she was a hero and chose to sacrifice herself. Zeus transformed her to ensure that she would stay at Camp Half-Blood so he could control her after she found out about the Great Prophecy and refused to become a "weapon."

In an interview with Deadline, Scobell said that the upcoming chapter will have a more mature tone compared to the first two seasons. He explained that it would be made for an older audience because the show's creators know that the majority of the viewers who loved Percy Jackson and the Olympians were likely children who grew up with the characters. And, it would also appeal more to the fans who are already adults.

It’s a lot more mature than Season 1 and 2. The end of Season 2 really sets up the tone for Season 3. It’s written for a little bit of an older audience. They’ve expected our audience to have gotten a little bit older than Season 1 and 2. So I’m really excited for that to happen.

Additionally, Scobell pointed out that the series has already been gradually getting darker and more mature in Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 2. The actor explained that he was very happy with the direction that the story was going and hopes that the show will go beyond just one more season, so audiences can continue to see these characters grow.

I guess it just kind of shows the brutal reality of the world they live in..this is like a normal demigod thing in a lot of ways, unfortunately for them. I’m really happy that we’re leaning more into that, because it just also shows our characters aren’t invincible. They get hurt, and it’s important to remember that, especially moving forward into all the crazy stuff we have to do in Season 3, and hopefully, if we get renewed, 4 and 5.

There is no specific release date for Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 3 at the time of this article's publication. However, it has been given a 2026 release window.

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Release Date December 19, 2023

Network Disney+

Showrunner Jonathan E. Steinberg, Dan Shotz

Directors James Bobin

Writers Joe Tracz, Andrew Miller

  • Headshot Of Walker Scobell

    Walker Scobell

    Percy Jackson

  • Headshot oF Leah Sava Jeffries

    Leah Sava Jeffries

    Annabeth Chase

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