Multi-Award-winning Lin-Manuel Miranda, best known as the creator of the Tony-Award-winning musical “Hamilton,” will have a guest starring role as Hermes in the upcoming Disney+ series, “Percy Jackson & The Olympians.”
The series is based on the best-selling novels by Rick Riordan. The main protagonist, Perseus “Percy” Jackson, is a boy who discovers he is a demigod son of Poseidon. In “Percy Jackson & the Olympians,” Percy (Walter Scobell) who, according to Deadline, is “coming to terms with his newfound divine powers when the sky god Zeus accuses him of stealing his master lightning bolt. With help from his friends Grover (Aryan Simhadri) and Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), Percy must embark on an adventure of a lifetime to find it and restore order to Olympus.”
Miranda, along with his son, are fans of the books. His character, Hermes the messenger god, looks out for travelers and thieves but is also a trickster. Although he is very personable, he has a strained relationship with his son, Luke — played by Charlie Bushnell. Hermes is hesitant to help Percy and his friends on their quest.
Previously announced guest stars Megan Mullally (“Will & Grace”), Virginia Kull (“Big Little Lies”), Glynn Turman (“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom”), Jason Mantzoukas (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”), Timm Sharp (“Undeclared”), Dior Goodjohn (“Glee”), Olivea Morton, Adam Copeland (Former WWE wrestler known as Edge), Suzanne Cryer (“Two Guys and a Girl”), and Jessica Parker Kennedy (“The Flash”).
In addition to creating and starring in “Hamilton,” Miranda is also the creator and original star of Broadway’s Tony-winning musical, “In the Heights.” Other Broadway shows include “Freestyle Love Supreme,” “Bring It On: The Musical,” and the 2009 revival of “West Side Story.”
He also collaborated with J.J. Abrams on the songs, “Dobra Doompa” for “Star Wars: Episode VII – The Force Awakens,” and “Lido Hey” for “Star Wars Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker.” Miranda contributed music, lyrics, and vocals to several songs in Disney’s feature film “Moana” which earned him a 2017 Oscar nomination and a 2018 Grammy Award for the original song, “How Far I’ll Go.” He also composed eight original songs for Disney’s Academy Award-winning animated feature, “Encanto.” The soundtrack spent nine nonconsecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. All eight of Mr. Miranda’s songs appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 in the same week.
“We Don’t Talk About Bruno” became the first No. 1 song on Billboard’s Hot 100 to be released by Walt Disney Records. With five weeks at No. 1, “Bruno” now holds the record for most weeks at the top for any song from a Disney film (animated or live-action).
For his song, “Dos Oruguitas,” Mr. Miranda received a 2022 Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.
Miranda’s other Disney connections include starring as Jack in the musical fantasy “Mary Poppins Returns” (2018), for which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy. For his performance in the Disney+ live stage recording of “Hamilton,” released in 2020, he received Golden Globe and Primetime Emmy Award nominations.
He also made his film directorial debut (and produced), with “tick, tick… BOOM!.” The film version was from the Off-Broadway show – loosely based on the life of “Rent” composer Jonathan Larson.
To date, his accolades include three Tony Awards, three Grammy Awards, two Laurence Olivier Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, an Annie Award, a MacArthur Fellowship Award, a Kennedy Center Honor, and a Pulitzer Prize.
The series is currently in production in Vancouver, Canada, and is expected to premiere exclusively on Disney+ in 2024.
Are you excited to see “Percy Jackson & The Olympians” when it comes out on Disney+? Have you read all the books? Let us know in the comments below.
Check out our other stories about “Percy Jackson & The Olympians”:
- Megan Mullally, Jason Mantzoukas, and More Join Percy Jackson Cast, Rick Riordan Shares First Photo From Set
- Rick Riordan Responds to Racist Backlash Around Annabeth Chase Casting for ‘Percy Jackson and the Olympians’ Disney+ Series
- Rick Riordan Announces ‘Percy Jackson’ Disney+ Series Will Have Eight Episodes, First Four Scripts Written
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Source: Deadline