Why You Can Trust CNET 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians': Release Date and How to Watch From Anywhere
Rick Riordan's beloved books get a more faithful adaption in the new Disney Plus series.
Rick Riordon's much-loved Percy Jackson book franchise gets a new lease of life on Disney+ this month, as a fresh live-action series based on the novels heads to the streaming service.
The eight-episode season- titled Percy Jackson and the Olympians, follows the events of The Lightning Thief — the first book of the series. Starring Walker Scobell in the lead role, the series follows Percy as he discovers that happens to be a demigod with divine powers.
When the Greek god Zeus tasks him with finding his stolen lightning bolt, Percy and his friends Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries) and Grover (Aryan Simhadri) must find themselves on a quest to retrieve the weapon and bring order back to Olympus.
This new reboot of the series comes after a pair of disappointing Percy Jackson movie adaptions in the early 2010's (The Lightning Thief and Sea of Monsters), which were infamously derided by Riordan himself. Fans of the books will be relieved to hear that this new series looks set to be far more faithful to the source material, with Riordan onboard as one of the writers.
Find out by following our guide on how to watch Percy Jackson and the Olympians and why a VPN could be a useful tool.
How to watch Percy Jackson and the Olympians on Disney Plus
The first two episodes of Percy Jackson and the Olympians will be available to stream on Disney Plus on Wednesday, Dec. 20, in the US and Canada at 12 a.m. PT, 3 a.m. ET -- that's 8 a.m. GMT in the UK, and 7 p.m. AEDT in Australia).
The remaining episodes will land on the service every Wednesday until the eighth and final episode of the season comes out on Jan. 31, 2024.
Disney Plus' ad-free service costs more in the US, but you can also try out the new ad-free Disney bundle, which launched in September. The service's ad-free tier increased to $140 a year or $14 a month, and an ad-based tier is also offered which costs $8 per month (no option to pay annually). Read more on how we tested Disney Plus' ad-supported tier and what to expect with the price hike.
Sign up for a standalone Disney Plus subscription with or without ads, or choose one of its bundle options. Disney packages its streaming services together -- Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN -- at a discount, letting you bundle two or three platforms in a single subscription. There are four bundles available now: Duo Basic, Duo Premium, Trio Basic and Trio Premium.
How to watch Percy Jackson and the Olympians from anywhere using a VPN
Perhaps you're traveling abroad and want to stream Disney Plus while away from home. With a VPN, you're able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the series from anywhere in the world. There are other good reasons to use a VPN for streaming too.
A VPN is the best way to encrypt your traffic and stop your ISP from throttling your speeds. Using a VPN is also a great idea if you're traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins. Streaming TV can be a bit smoother with a reliable, quality VPN that's passed our tests and security standards.
You can use a VPN to stream content legally as long as VPNs are allowed in your country and you have a valid subscription to the streaming service you're using. The US and Canada are among the countries where VPNs are legal, but we advise against streaming or downloading content on illegal torrent sites. We recommend ExpressVPN, but you may opt for another provider from our best list, such as Surfshark or NordVPN.
If you're looking for a secure and dependable VPN, our Editors' Choice is ExpressVPN. It's fast, works on multiple devices and provides stable streams. It's normally $13 per month, but you can sign up for ExpressVPN and save 49% -- the equivalent of $6.67 per month -- if you get an annual subscription.
ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Follow the VPN provider's instructions for installation and choose a country where Percy Jackson and the Olympians is streaming on Disney Plus. Before you open the streaming app, make sure you're connected to your VPN using your selected region. If you want to stream the TV show on more than one device, it's possible you'll need to configure each one to ensure you're signed in. Go to settings and check your network connections to verify you're logged in and connected to your VPN account. Now you're ready to open Disney Plus to stream.
If you run into issues with streaming, first make sure your VPN is up and running on its encrypted IP address. Double-check that you've followed installation instructions correctly and you've picked the right geographical area for viewing. If you still encounter connection problems, you may need to reboot your device. Close all apps and windows, restart your device and connect to your VPN first. Note that some streaming services have restrictions on VPN access.