Andra Day, who received an Oscar nomination for Best Lead Actress and won a Golden Globe for her role in The United States vs. Billie Holiday, has been cast as Athena, the Greek Goddess of Wisdom and Annabeth’s mother, in the upcoming second season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians on Disney+. The announcement was made at D23 in Brazil, with a video of Day in character shared on the show’s social media.
Day joins a growing cast, including Tamara Smart as Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus, and Daniel Diemer as Percy’s half-brother Tyson, along with returning stars Walker Scobell, Leah Sava Jeffries, Aryan Simhadri, Charlie Bushnell, and Dior Goodjohn. The new season will follow Percy, Annabeth, and Grover as they embark on an adventure inspired by The Sea of Monsters, the second book in Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Production on Season 2 began in Vancouver in August.
The season picks up a year after Percy’s first journey, where he returns to Camp Half-Blood to find his life in turmoil. His relationship with Annabeth is changing; he discovers he has a cyclops brother; Grover is missing; and the camp faces an imminent threat from the forces of Kronos. Percy’s quest to restore balance will take him to the dangerous Sea of Monsters, where a hidden destiny awaits the son of Poseidon.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians is created by Rick Riordan and Jonathan E. Steinberg. The latter, along with Dan Shotz, run the show. Leah Sava Jeffries stars as Annabeth Chase, and Aryan Simhadri stars as Grover Underwood. The second season will stream next year.