Alexandra Daddario's Cult Fantasy Movie Series Is Getting A Second Life On Netflix
It's not particularly unusual to see one of an actor's old cult films turn up on a streaming service and get a second life. However, it's a considerably less common occurrence to see an entire film series pull that exact same stunt. Granted, in Alexandra Daddario's case, said film series is only two movies long — but it's still a pretty impressive achievement, right?
The two Daddario films in question form the entirety of the Percy Jackson movie series, which never got a third installment and thus clocked out well before Rick Riordan's entire "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" book series was adapted. As of FlixPatrol's June 19 list of 10 most popular Netflix movies in the United States, 2010's "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" is sitting at the number 2 spot. it's sequel, "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters," isn't too far behind, coming in at number 4.
The movies tell the story of the titular Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman), who turns out to be of the handful of people who are actually demigods who are related to the Greek pantheon. As the son of Poseidon (Kevin McKidd), Percy is drawn into a series of adventures, where he has to interact with various mythological figures and their descendants. In both films, Daddario plays Percy's love interest Annabeth Chase, another half-blood and a daughter of Athena, the goddess of wisdom.
The Percy Jackson movie series couldn't cut it in the theaters, but the streaming era is kinder
Despite their interesting premise, the Percy Jackson movies were never massive success stories back in the day. Neither movie was particularly well received when they came out, with "Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters" in particular drawing bad reviews. The sequel's comparatively meager $199.85 million box office haul against a $90 million budget also effectively meant the end of the series.
Still, Rick Riordan's fantasy series has plenty of fans, and "The Lightning Thief" alone has spent over 830 weeks on the New York Times YA best seller list. Whether the movies have been able to pull the streaming audiences in with their own charm or if they are benefitting from the ripples from the faithful but flat "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" on Disney+ doesn't really matter — it's clear that Netflix users have been keen to experience the films in the comfort of their own home.