Percy Jackson and the Olympians and HBO's Harry Potter: Are small-screen adaptations overselling themselves? Here's what we think

As Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2 is five episodes in, we recently learned that the second season of the Disney+ series is struggling. Many fans cite the various changes as the reason behind the second season's troubles. As that happens, fans of another iconic early aughts franchise are cautious about the small-screen adaptation of HBO's decade-long Harry Potter TV series.

Warwick Davis's recent Times Radio interview has Potterheads both excited and cautiously optimistic. Both reactions are understandable, as fans of the books will be excited to see their favorite moments from the books come to life. Some might also have a hard time believing it, given that Disney+'s Percy Jackson and the Olympians was also advertised as a faithful adaptation, only to make numerous changes.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 1 deviated from the books in several ways:

Author Rick Riordan confirmed the Disney+ adaptation of his books in 2020. He hyped up the fans that the series would be a faithful adaptation of the books. However, fans noticed some changes from the book The Lightning Thief as soon as the first season concluded two years ago. Riordan especially hyped up the sixth episode of Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 1, "We Take a Zebra to Vegas".

For the uninitiated, the Lotus Hotel and Casino was heavily featured in that episode. However, unlike the books, the trio know the true nature of the hotel, keeping them on their toes, only to fail as in the books. Moreover, the episode also confirms that the deadline for Percy's quest has passed, but the young hero and his friends continue on their quest to fulfill it.

These changes are why Disney+'s Percy Jackson and the Olympians alienated fans, as some love it and others hate it. This reaction has Potterheads wondering if the cast and crew of the HBO Harry Potter series are hyping it up only to disappoint them.

Warwick Davis suggests a more faithful adaptation of the Potter books:

Warwick Davis, who played Professor Flitwick in the Harry Potter movies and is set to return for the role in the HBO series, teased fans about what they could expect from it in a Times Radio interview:

“I’m working on it at the moment, but I can’t really tell you anything other than we’re retelling those wonderful stories but with more depth and detail than has been seen before. They’re very faithful adaptations of the book. We’re obviously telling the same story so there are similar moments that we’re experiencing as actors on the set. But it’s weird being back in the same studios again, doing it all again, because Leavesden is where we shot the films.”

This is not the first time that the series has been referred to as more faithful to the books. Chairman and CEO of HBO & Max Content, Casey Bloys, also teased a faithful adaptation of the Potter books in the official HBO public statement in 2023:

“We are delighted to give audiences the opportunity to discover Hogwarts in a whole new way. Harry Potter is a cultural phenomenon and it is clear there is such an enduring love and thirst for the Wizarding World. In partnership with Warner Bros. Television and J.K. Rowling, this new Max Original series will dive deep into each of the iconic books that fans have continued to enjoy for all of these years.”

Our take on the "faithful" adaptation discourse:

Firstly, we need to recognize that a lot of Percy Jackson fans are a bit upset about the most minor changes. There is a huge difference between book-accurate adaptations and book-faithful adaptations. People working on adaptations can be faithful and yet may not be accurate.

To be fair, Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 1, ends the same way as the book does. Percy manages to retrieve Zeus's bolt and returns it to the Greek God, like in the book. Similarly, HBO's adaptation of Harry Potter is going to introduce Lucius Malfoy and Cornelius Fudge right in the first season, despite being introduced only in the second book.

All books of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians and the Harry Potter series have been published almost twenty years ago. Therefore, the people working on the adaptations of these projects have a blueprint.

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Where do you fall in the book-accurate vs book-faithful debate? Let us know.

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