New Percy Jackson and the Olympians Poster Reveals Season 1 MacGuffin

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is just over two months away from making its long-awaited debut on Disney+. The serialized adaptation of Rick Riordan's best-selling books is set to adapt the first installment, The Lightning Thief, in its first eight episodes. That 375-page tale serves as both an origin story for the titular demigod as well as the groundwork for a titanic conflict further down the line. As emphasized in the title, The Lightning Thief takes Percy and company on a quest to retrieve Zeus's stolen master bolt as the Olympian gods threaten to wage war.

New Percy Jackson Poster Reveals Zeus's Master Bolt

The Lightning Thief has arrived.

Disney+ has debuted a new Percy Jackson and the Olympians motion poster featuring the show's core trio. Aryan Simhadri (Grover Underwood) and Leah Jeffries (Annabeth Chase) each stand opposite Walker Scobell (Percy Jackson) as he wields Zeus's master bolt.

Embrace your fate. #PercyJackson and the Olympians, an Original series, premieres December 20 on #DisneyPlus. pic.twitter.com/NtzTkuo9gV

— Disney+ (@DisneyPlus) October 9, 2023

"Embrace your fate," the poster's tagline reads.

What is Zeus's Master Bolt?

Zeus's master bolt serves as the MacGuffin for Percy Jackson Season 1. Its theft expedites Percy's leap from the regular world to Camp Half-Blood, as the king of the gods suspects the son of Poseidon to be the lightning thief. With a return deadline of the summer solstice, Percy has limited time to get caught up to speed on his heritage as he needs to complete this crucial quest in short order.

The master bolt is the symbol of Zeus's power. It is the most powerful weapon that the Elder Cyclopes constructed for the Olympian gods. While gods cannot steal each other's symbols of power, nothing bars their demigod children from carrying out thefts. This leads to Zeus (Lance Reddick) accusing Poseidon (Toby Stephens) of having his son, Percy, carry out this mission in an effort to usurp the god of lightning's power among the 12 Olympian gods.

Rick Riordan Teases "So Much More" to Come

Speaking to ComicBook.com's Liam Crowley in September, author and series executive producer Rick Riordan teased that the current promotional material for Percy Jackson is only scratching the surface.

"That's not even really the one hundred percent finished product. It's going to only get better from there," Riordan said. "They did a great job showing just enough to let you know what you're in for, but oh, there's so much more that they didn't show. I think the fans are going to be just really over the moon for it."

Percy Jackson and the Olympians premieres on Disney+ on December 20th.