The previously-announced Percy Jackson spinoff movie trilogy has been canceled at Netflix. Percy Jackson is a popular Rick Riordan novel series that follows the life of Percy, the demigod son of Poseidon. Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief was first adapted into a film in 2010.
As per a statement from Riordan on Goodreads, Netflix has canceled development on a movie trilogy of the Percy Jackson spinoff series The Kane Chronicles. According to the author, the series is in “turnaround,” which means that Netflix has “decided not to move forward.” The future of The Kane Chronicles movie adaptations now depends on whether another studio wants to snatch up the titles. Check out Riordan’s statement below:
Thanks! Right now, Kane Chronicles is in ‘turnaround,’ which means Netflix has decided not to move forward and their option has lapsed after trying for two years to develop a script they liked. Now it depends on whether another studio would like to step in, assume the preproduction costs, and move forward. This is not at all unusual. It happens, I would guess, with the majority of film projects. Also, the streaming industry as a whole is shrinking their development slate right now, meaning they are cancelling more content and making less content. Kane got caught in that trend, despite the strong success of Percy TV. Magnus Chase we are holding in reserve for now. I don’t want to do that until I have enough bandwidth to do it properly, and as you may have guessed, I’m pretty busy! (Hence also the reason you won’t see me in Australia for a tour any time soon / probably ever.)
Why The Kane Chronicles Shutdown Is Probably a Good Thing
Including the books The Red Pyramid, The Throne of Fire, and The Serpent’s Shadow, The Kane Chronicles were a Riordan series set in the same universe as Percy Jackson. The Kane Chronicles were originally announced to get Netflix movie adaptations back in 2020. Since then, the prospective film trilogy has spent time in development hell. As Riordan describes, Netflix was “trying for two years to develop a script they liked.”
In the meantime, Disney+ released a TV series adaptation of Percy Jackson & the Olympians. The Percy Jackson TV series was well-reviewed by critics, receiving a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. This came, however, after abysmal movie adaptations of the books The Lightning Thief and Sea of Monsters, which left critics and fans alike highly unsatisfied.
Percy Jackson’s Disney Success Paves The Way For A Forgotten Book Series Finally Getting A Live-Action Adaptation
The overwhelming success of Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 1 makes a forgotten book series more likely for a live-action adaptation.
Because of the bad track record with Riordan film adaptations, it is probably a good thing that The Kane Chronicles were shut down when they were. If Netflix was struggling that much to settle on a good script, there was probably something fundamentally wrong with how the series was being developed. If they were to continue, they could have made The Kane Chronicles fall victim to the same fate as did the Percy Jackson movies. So, while the cancelation of The Kane Chronicles movie trilogy may be disappointing, it is likely for the best for the sanctity of the books.
