Rick Riordan Says Criticism Of ‘Percy Jackson’ Disney+ Series Casting Is Bullying, And R
Rick Riordan Says Criticism Of ‘Percy Jackson’ Disney+ Series Casting Is Bullying, And Racist [via Deadline]Rick Riordan, author of the popular YA adventure novel series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, is speaking out amid backlash in casting one of his characters in Disney+’s upcoming series adaptation.In a blog post Tuesday, Riordan criticized those “who have a problem with the casting of Leah Jeffries as Annabeth Chase,” saying “It’s a shame such posts need to be written, but they do.”Jeffries, whose credits include Empire, was cast last week along with Aryan Simhadri to to star alongside Walker Scobell who will play Percy Jackson in the 20th Television-produced series. Simhadri and Jeffries will play Percy’s friends Grover and Annabeth, respectively.“I have been clear, as the author, that I was looking for the best actors to inhabit and bring to life the personalities of these characters, and that physical appearance was secondary for me,” Riordan wrote. “We did that. We took a year to do this process thoroughly and find the best of the best. This trio is the best. Leah Jeffries is Annabeth Chase.”He added: “You are judging her appropriateness for this role solely and exclusively on how she looks. She is a Black girl playing someone who was described in the books as white.“Friends, that is racism.” -- source link
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