Leah Sava Jeffries is reflecting on one of the most demanding days on set for Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2.
The actress, who plays Annabeth Chase, spoke with Decider about Episode 5, titled “We Check Into C.C.’s Spa & Resort,” and shared how one key scene required more emotional depth than she expected.
The 16-year-old said the episode allowed her and co-star Walker Scobell, who plays Percy Jackson, to work in a more flexible way.
“There’s a very, very sweet scene between Percy and Annabeth. It was really intense for us that day,” she said.
She continued, “It was very intense — some of the things that were in there were actually improv.”
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Episode 5 includes several major story moments, including Circe, played by Rosemarie DeWitt, temporarily transforming Percy into a guinea pig, along with a sequence where Annabeth encounters a dangerous siren’s call.
Near the end of the episode, Percy pulls Annabeth away from the sirens. The moment also features a brief appearance by Annabeth’s mother, Athena, portrayed by Andra Day. In Rick Riordan’s book series, Athena’s first on-page appearance does not occur until The Titan’s Curse, making the show’s introduction earlier than expected.
Leah explained that she and her costar experimented with a variety of movements during filming to find the right emotional tone before producers decided on the final version. She said the improvisation wasn’t about dialogue, but about the physicality of the scene.
“People actually ask a lot, they’re always asking, ‘Do you guys improv and all that?’ And we always were like, ‘Not that much,’ But it wasn’t like words improv the entire time, it was like physical improv, I think, that wasn’t in the script at first,” she explained to the outlet.
“And it was actually really, really good for that scene to come out a certain way.”
The first five episodes of Season 2 are now streaming on Disney+ and Hulu. New episodes debut on Wednesdays.
