D23 Spotlight on "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" Brings Season 2 Secrets and Season 3 Teases
D23’s latest edition of their Spotlight Series brought the world of Percy Jackson and the Olympians to the Grand Central Air Terminal as showrunner Craig Silverstein, director James Bobin, and cast members Daniel Diemer (Tyson) and Dior Goodjohn (Clarisse La Rue) took the stage to share behind-the-scenes stories and tease what fans can expect as Disney+ brings The Sea of Monsters to life.
Despite the thunderous fan energy in the room, the panel felt intimate and deeply personal, anchored by the cast and creators reflecting on their connection to Rick Riordan’s iconic books — and their commitment to honoring them.
Moderator Liam Crowley opened by asking how each panelist first encountered Riordan’s world.
For Craig Silverstein, it began at home. “My son Jacob ran up to me when he was nine,” he recalled. “But really, it was his friend Oren, who’d read everything. Oren was my source when I first got the call.”
James Bobin shared that The Lightning Thief was a favorite of his daughter, whose passion influenced his enthusiasm for directing the series. “She loved those books… she even studied Greek and Latin because of Percy Jackson.”
For Dior Goodjohn, who plays Clarisse, the connection goes back to her childhood. She wanted to be just like her older cousins who devoured the books. “I walked around carrying them because they did,” she laughed. But it wasn’t until her audition that she truly dove deep into the world.
Daniel Diemer discovered the books as a teenager — and his enthusiasm never faded. He even once pitched himself to Disney to play Percy Jackson. Disney’s response? “Dude, you’re 24.” He laughed as he recalled the moment. Years later, he would instead become Tyson — a role that would prove deeply meaningful.
Dior Goodjohn’s audition is the kind of story that becomes fandom legend.
While reading lines for a friend auditioning for Luke, she thought, This script is so good — I wish I had an audition for this. Weeks later, one arrived. Goodjohn filmed her self-tape in a makeshift setup involving a mic stand wrapped in tinfoil (to mimic Clarisse’s electrified spear) and a bed sheet taped to the ceiling. In the middle of an intense moment, she accidentally whacked her laptop, prompting director Dan to ask, “Uh… is your laptop okay?”
“I thought I bombed it,” she admitted. She didn’t. Days later, she was told: You’re Clarisse.
Diemer’s journey was equally heartfelt. He signed an NDA — then immediately broke it to send his audition tape to his dad. “We’d read the books together,” he said, “so I needed him to see it.” He later learned Rick Riordan praised his dynamic with Walker Scobell as better than what he wrote in the book — news that visibly stunned him onstage.
Director James Bobin, who directed the first two episodes of Season 2, described the experience of returning: “It was like going home. Everyone is such a good friend now. And I know the books inside out, so it was joyful to reopen this world.”
Goodjohn compared it to summer camp. “I was so happy I could cry,” she said, describing the ritual of returning to the exhaustive character binders prepared by the show’s acting coach — massive volumes of mythology, relationships, and history. “He tests you,” she warned. “You have to read the binder.”
One of the biggest revelations from the panel was Season 2’s dramatic shift away from StageCraft volume technology. “Season 1 used the volume a lot,” Bobin said. “Season 2 — we didn’t use it at all.”
Instead, they built enormous outdoor sets, including the most challenging sequence of the season: the chariot race. To make it real, the team constructed a quarter-mile track in the woods with real horses. Because safety rules prevented actors from riding in moving chariots attached to horses, the team devised multiple rigs, mock-ups, and second unit shoots to create the illusion of speed and danger.
The level of planning was enormous. “I even had tiny horse models,” Bobin admitted. “I had to track where everyone was at all times for both story and race flow.”
The sequence is dedicated to stunt coordinator Danny Virtue, whose work deeply shaped the show.
Clarisse La Rue becomes a centerpiece of Season 2, and Goodjohn approached the character with depth: “To play a villain well, you have to believe what you're doing is right,” she explained. Because Clarisse appears only briefly in Season 1, Goodjohn built an extensive personal backstory that informed her Season 2 performance.
Diemer spoke about the physical challenge of playing a Cyclops. “Humans see depth because we use two images,” he said. “With one eye, your depth perception changes.” Tyson’s careful, slightly clumsy movement was intentionally crafted to feel real, not comedic. “I wanted him grounded — emotional, relatable.”
Diemer described filming aboard the Ironclad, one of the largest sets he’d ever seen. He and Scobell longed to recreate the Titanic “I’m flying” moment… but resisted disrupting filming. At the end of the shoot, director Jason finally said:
“Okay boys… assume Titanic position.”
With crew member Sue singing “My Heart Will Go On,” Diemer and Scobell got their moment.
Goodjohn’s blooper was more dramatic — and gravity-assisted. While filming an intense scene in the desert region of British Columbia, she sprinted past her mark, lost sight of her footing, and accidentally ran off a small cliff. Fortunately, she was unharmed — and yes, it’s on camera.
Fans got an extra treat when Tamara Smart made a surprise appearance, introduced as the live-action Thalia Grace. Smart recalled first seeing “Percy Jackson” on the audition breakdown and thinking it was wild she was reading for something so beloved — and even wilder that Grace’s name was attached. Because of her age and previous connection to the franchise through Lance Reddick, she initially assumed she was too old for the role. “I was like, okay… I’ll give it a go,” she said with a laugh.
She did a second audition in August, and soon found herself on a plane to Vancouver for a screen test with Walker Scobell. “I was so nervous. I was literally a wreck,” she admitted. After flying home exhausted, she crashed for a nap — only to wake up to her family charging into the room with a phone in hand. On the other end was her manager, telling her she’d landed the part.
Her appearance onstage served as a bridge between Season 2 and the already-in-production Season 3, with the creative team teasing that fans will be seeing a lot more of Thalia Grace going forward.
The panel closed with a startling logistical fact: Season 2 wrapped on a Tuesday. Season 3 began filming that Friday. Silverstein confirmed the writers' room was already halfway through Season 3 scripts. And despite the frantic pace, Goodjohn called it “a blessing,” eager for more binders and more Clarisse.
The panel ended with playful, Riordan-style chapter titles hinting at moments to come:
- Clarisse Falls Off a Cliff
- Tyson Sees a Rainbow
- I Made Clarisse a PB&J
- I Accidentally Discover Chiron’s Weird Musical Taste
The second season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians is currently available on Disney+.