Percy Jackson and the Olympians star Leah Sava Jeffries opens up about playing a different kind of Annabeth and being an inspiration to other girls.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians star Leah Sava Jeffries opens up about playing a different version of Annabeth. The upcoming Disney+ show is based on the book series of the same name by Rick Riordan, which was previously adapted into two feature films. The show's cast is led by Walker Scobell as Percy Jackson alongside Jeffries as Annabeth Chase, a daughter of Athena, and Aryan Simhadri as Grover Underwood, a satyr.
For Entertainment Weekly's 2023 Fall TV preview, an interview that was conducted prior to the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike, Jeffries opened up about playing a different version of Annabeth ahead of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians release date later this year. The star also hopes to be an inspiration to other girls and added that her experience filming the Disney+ series has been "phenomenal and unbelievable." See what she shared below:
I'm playing a character that is a different person, different hair color, different skin tones, and all that. That's what the prototype was. Just to hear that I'm playing her different was like, "Wow, I'm now gonna be an inspiration to other girls." My experience filming the series has been phenomenal and unbelievable.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians was previously adapted into two feature films that starred Logan Lerman, Alexandra Daddario, and Brandon T. Jackson as the main trio. The two movies, 2010's The Lightning Thief and 2013's Sea of Monsters, were heavily criticized for deviating from their source material. The upcoming Percy Jackson show, which Riordan is heavily involved in as a writer and executive producer, is expected to be a much more faithful rendering of the books.
Though it is expected to be a more faithful adaptation, Jeffries' version of Annabeth will be very different from the books. The daughter of Athena is described by Riordan as blonde and white in the books, though the Disney+ series cast a Black actress in the role, which sparked a casting controversy. As the star says, her version of Annabeth won't just be different because of her skin tone and hair color, but she will be a different person altogether.
Annabeth was previously played by Daddario in the Percy Jackson movies, long before the actor received an Emmy nomination for her performance in The White Lotus season 1. As a brunette, Daddario also has a different hair color than the character in the books, which at the time, sparked some controversy among fans. Despite the differences in appearance, it will be interesting to see Jeffries' interpretation of Annabeth in Percy Jackson and the Olympians, though she will likely remain a smart, strong, and capable demigod, just as she is in the books.
Source: EW
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