Netflix Quietly Adding Beloved 'Percy Jackson' Movies, Based on Best-Selling Books
Both Percy Jackson movies are making their way to Netflix in the United States in June. The films are based on the beloved young adult fantasy books by Rick Riordan, which popularized Greek mythology for a whole generation of readers.
Directed by Chris Columbus, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief was released in 2010 to strong reviews, starring Logan Lerman as the iconic hero and featuring a supporting cast including Sean Bean, Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, and Pierce Brosnan.
The movie is inspired by Riordan's first novel in the series, which follows the teenage son of Poseidon, God of the Sea, as he discovers his heritage and undertakes a dangerous journey to reclaim his mother from the depths of a mythological underworld. Riordan's book was an immediate hit, which has since spent over ten years on the New York Times Bestseller list and sold over a million copies.
Columbus' film was met with a warm reception from book fans and movie critics alike, who both praised its ability to tell such a grand, sprawling story in just two hours while maintaining a core message of hope and friendship throughout. It's a perfect story to introduce new fans to Greek mythology for the first time, but Riordan's storytelling ensures that it's much more than just an encyclopedia.
Three years later, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters was released, and the cracks in this short-lived franchise quickly began to show. The sequel was much less popular among fans, and critics were much harsher in their criticism of the filmmaking and storytelling.
The sequel was directed by Thor Freudenthal, who had previously received acclaim for his work on the Diary of a Wimpy Kid franchise. Unfortunately, he failed to replicate that success here. The second movie does a much worse job of balancing all the plot details together, resulting in a messy project that's both too long and too underdeveloped compared to the first.
Unfortunately, the failure of Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters effectively killed the franchise before it even had a chance to thrive. There were still three books in Riordan's main franchise that never got adapted because Sea of Monsters was such a critical disappointment.
Thankfully, audiences can finally see these stories on-screen in Disney's Percy Jackson television series, which is on track to adapt all five books across five separate seasons. But for those who still want to revel in the nostalgia of the movies, both The Lightning Thief and Sea of Monsters are coming to Netflix in the U.S. on June 15, 2026.
This story was originally published by Men's Journal on May 25, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
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This story was originally published May 25, 2026 at 8:44 AM.