Percy Jackson Trailer Breakdown: 10 Easter Eggs, Sequel Teases, Characters Explained and More

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is just four months away from hitting Disney+. The serialized adaptation of Rick Riordan’s best-selling novels has been in the works for over three years now, with news of development first surfacing in early 2020. Percy Jackson would roll cameras last summer and wrap filming this past February, leaving fans with just a post-production window before it premieres. To celebrate the titular character’s canonical birthday, Disney+ released a new 30-second teaser trailer for Percy Jackson. While the half-minute of footage does not give away much, a couple of key frames give big hints towards where the first season is going.

Elevator to Olympus

The trailer opens with Walker Scobell’s Percy taking an elevator by his lonesome. As evident by Percy donning Annabeth’s Camp Half-Blood necklace, this comes in the later half of the season, as she gifts him the accessory in The Lightning Thief Chapter 20 ahead of his battle with Ares.

This is the Empire State Building’s elevator, one which is taking Percy to the 600th floor, the portal to Olympus. Given that he is carrying a backpack, it is likely that Zeus’s stolen master bolt is within that bag.

Ares Arrives

WWE Hall of Famer Adam “Edge” Copeland makes his official debut as the god of war, Ares. Ares is seen wielding his signature sword and also dons his familiar leather trench coat.

It’s worth noting that there is a lighthouse in the background of this shot. While this could be Santa Monica, the site of Percy and Ares’s battle, the lighthouse’s colors most strongly resemble the real-life lighthouse at Montauk. Percy Jackson fans will recall Montauk as a popular vacation spot for Percy and his mother, as well as being the location of Percy’s clash with the Minotaur.

If that landscape is indeed Montauk, this would suggest that Ares is showing up far sooner in the show than he does in the book, possibly as a way of indicating that he has been keeping tabs on Percy from the jump.

Poseidon’s Cabin

Percy opens the doors to a vacant cabin. This is because this is Poseidon’s cabin, a home dedicated to children of the sea god. Percy is the first son of Poseidon in over a century, which is why the spot has been left dormant. 

Capture the Flag

Camp Half-Blood campers are seen jogging across a rope bridge. While it is not confirmed that they are playing capture the flag, their Greek battle helmets tease that they are in the middle of the iconic camp game.

Medusa

Jessica Parker Kennedy’s Medusa makes a blink-and-miss-it cameo. Her lone frame is a close-up of her eyes, which turn those who lock into their gaze to stone.

In The Lightning Thief, Medusa is one of the first monsters that Percy and company encounter on their quest.

Satyr!

Aryan Simhadri’s Grover Underwood shows off his goat-side, rocking his furry legs for the first time. Grover is a satyr: half man, half goat.

Thalia’s Tree

Another blink-and-miss Easter egg comes in the form of Thalia’s tree. As Percy, Grover and Annabeth exit camp to begin their quest, they pass a tree with outstretched, limb-esque branches.

This is Thalia’s tree. In the books, Thalia Grace is a demigod that is spared by the gods when she is transformed into a tree rather than being allowed to die in battle. Thalia’s tree gives Camp Half-Blood a protective barrier from the outside world and plays a major role in the second novel, The Sea of Monsters.

Annabeth Drives Her Dagger Down

Leah Jeffries’s Annabeth gets to shine in the later moments, driving her signature dagger down into a monster. Based on the periphery, it is possible that this takes place at the St. Louis Arch, a monument that hosts the trio’s battle with Echidna and the Chimera.

Minotaur Strikes

The aforementioned Minotaur rams his beastly body into Gabe Ugliano’s Camaro, setting off Percy’s on-foot journey to Camp Half-Blood. Sally Jackson, Percy’s mom, borrowed her boyfriend’s prized possession car to vacation with her son to Montauk. As evident by this attack, those priceless wheels aren’t making it out in one piece.

Zeus

“Percy Jackson, we’ve been expecting you,” the late Lance Reddick booms, making his vocal debut as Zeus.

This line of dialogue is stitched together with a different scene, as Zeus first interacts with Percy when Percy is alone, and this frame in question shows the full trio. Zeus’s words likely come in the Percy Jackson Season 1 finale, as it is in the final chapters that he first meets the top suspected thief of his master bolt.

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