How Greek Mythology Inspired Percy Jackson

Mythology has been part of society for a long time. Ancient people created stories to explain phenomena that occurred on Earth. There are books and movies that are based on myths themselves. They include ones like "Clash of the Titans," "Hercules," and "Troy," among others, per IMDb. They delve into the rich stories that were first told thousands of years ago and continue to endure. Then there were ones that turn the myths around and are told from a completely different vantage point. "Grendel" is one of those, a story told from the viewpoint of the monster that Beowulf slew in the original Norse myth, per Kirkus Reviews. 

Then there are ones that are written for entertainment and include characters from mythology. The television show "Supernatural" pitted all kinds of gods against Dean and Sam Winchester. Thor has been a Marvel superhero in both the comic books and the movies. There is a loose skein of mythology dangling in some of his backstory, but most of it is from the imagination of present-day writers. However, the Percy Jackson movies and books use the Greek gods in ways that the ancients never would have imagined.

It's obvious that Rick Riordan, the author of the Percy Jackson series, loves Greek mythology, per Britannica. He has such gods like Zeus, Hermes, and Hades, among others in his books. There are some references to Greek mythology, like Persephone is down in the Underworld with Hades, but there are modern twists, too. Jackson is actually a son of Poseidon, the god of the seas, and a mortal woman. This grants the teenager demigod status.

While these myths and their characters do inspire Riordan, one can see that the teenage Jackson is more of a spinoff than anything. Obviously, the ancient ones who created them could never have imagined what modern life would be like. It's still fun for people to see these gods in an all new setting and backdrop. 

There have been two movies in the Percy Jackson series: "Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief" and "Percy Jackson: Seas of Monsters." There are five books in the series. While there won't be a third big screen adaptation, Disney+ is going to be adapting it to their streaming service, per Entertainment Weekly. This can let the series breathe, and Riordan is taking a big part in its development. Then we can continue watching the Greek gods in action.