Hades later appears and reveals that Sally Jackson is his prisoner, and proposes she be traded for the master bolt. Chiron instructs Percy not to bargain with the god, but to go to Olympus to convince Zeus that he did not take the bolt. Percy sneaks away from the camp to travel to the Underworld along with Grover and Annabeth, who secure for him a portable shield from Luke, flying shoes and a map to Persephone's (Rosario Dawson) pearls, one of which will reveal the exit from the Underworld.
At Aunty Em's Garden Emporium, they are attacked by Medusa (Uma Thurman), but manage to kill her, and take the pearl from her bracelet. They also take her head, which they later successfully use against a hydra that attacks them during their gaining of another pearl from the crown of a giant statue of Athena at the Parthenon replica in Nashville, Tennessee. They acquire the third and final pearl from a roulette wheel at a hotel casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, in part with help from Poseidon. The map reveals an entrance to the Underworld in Hollywood, California, beneath the Hollywood Sign.
The trio enter the Underworld and cross the River Styx. Persephone takes them to Hades. Percy tries to explain to Hades that he did not steal the bolt. During a resulting chaos, Percy drops his shield, whose handle conceals the missing master bolt, which Hades takes. However, the trio manage to get it back before escaping the Underworld with the rescued Sally, forced to leave Grover behind, in Persephone's "care", as they only had three pearls. They are transported to the top of the Empire State Building, which they learn is the entrance to Olympus. They are confronted by Luke, who reveals himself to have been the real lightning thief. Explaining his hope for new rulers to take over Olympus, he explains that he had hoped that the trio would not escape the Underworld alive. He steals the bolt from Percy and the two fight. After using his water powers to get rid of Luke, Percy arrives in Olympus, where he presents the retrieved bolt, and reveals the truth about Luke. Poseidon explains to Percy the reason why they could not know each other during Percy's childhood, but expresses his love for his son. Percy also requests that Zeus retrieve Grover from the Underworld, to which the god agrees. Percy returns to Camp Half-Blood, where he continues his training, ending the movie in the midst of a clash with Annabeth. After the end credits, a scene shows Sally forcing Gabe out of their apartment and he reads a note on the fridge from Percy that says not to open the fridge. Gabe destroys the lock on the refrigerator and as he opens it, Medusa stares right back at him, and the scene goes black while a crackling noise is heard, showing that Gabe has been turned to stone.
In June 2004, 20th Century Fox bought the movie rights to the book. In April 2007, director Chris Columbus was hired to helm the project. Filming began in April 2009 in Vancouver. Sections of the movie were shot at the Parthenon in Nashville, Tennessee, a full-scale replica of the original Parthenon in Athens. Filming wrapped up on the morning of July 25, 2009 in Vancouver, British Columbia. Digital intermediate work began in San Francisco in November 2009. Christophe Beck composed the score.
Columbus has stated that the cast were chosen specifically with sequels in mind. " I think with Percy Jackson it was a matter of finding the right cast to fit into these roles, sort of the perfect cast for these roles, because hopefully, God willing, we will go on to do other Percy Jackson movies and you want the cast to grow with their characters."
The movie opened on February 12, 2010 in 3,356 theaters; its opening weekend box-office results totaled $31,236,067 in the U.S., finishing at #3 behind "The Wolfman", which opened at #2 with $31,479,235 and "Valentine's Day", which opened at #1 with $56,260,707. The movie had a strong opening weekend for its genre, posting the highest opening weekend for a fantasy movie not from the "Harry Potter", "Narnia", or "The Lord of the Rings" series. As of March 9, 2010, it grossed a total of $78,886,633, with $111,950,508 elsewhere in the world, bringing it to $190,837,141. It is the second highest grossing movie worldwide in 2010 after "Alice in Wonderland".
Critical reception of the movie has been mixed, as indicated by a weighted average score of 48 out of 100 from Metacritic. The movie currently holds a 50% 'Rotten' rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 120 reviews; the site's consensus being that although the movie "may seem like just another Harry Potter knockoff, the movie benefits from a strong supporting cast, a speedy plot, and plenty of fun with Greek mythology". Kenneth Turan of "Los Angeles Times" described the movie as "standard Hollywood product... unadventurous and uninteresting." "The Washington Post" reviewer thought "the movie suffers by taking itself a little too seriously. It's not just that it's a lot less funny than the book. It's also a lot less fun."
On BBC Radio 5 Mark Kermode criticized the similarity of the movie to director Chris Columbus' "Harry Potter" films.
A Percy Jackson video game based on "Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" was released on the Nintendo DS on February 11, 2010.
GameZone's Michael Splechta gave it a 6/10, saying "Percy Jackson might not make a splash when it comes to movie tie-in games, but fans of turn-based combat might find some redeeming qualities in this otherwise bare-bones game."
The Last Olympian
The Last Olympian is a fantasy-adventure novel based on Greek mythology by Rick Riordan published on May 5, 2009. It is the fifth and final installment in the "Percy Jackson & the Olympians" series and serves as the direct sequel to "The Battle of the Labyrinth". There is a statement at the end of the book referencing the close of "the first Camp Half-Blood series," indicating that there might be more to follow. "The Last Olympian" revolves around the demigod Perseus Jackson as he leads his friends in a last stand to protect Mount Olympus. The book received many positive reviews.
Percy Jackson, his friends, and the Olympians fight in a war resembling the original war between the Greek gods and the Titans and in a final battle with the powerful Titan, Kronos. Many fight for Olympus, including the Hunters of Artemis, dryads, satyrs, naiads, and tree nymphs, Chiron's centaur cousins the Party Ponies, and the hellhound Mrs. O'Leary. They must defend Mt. Olympus from Kronos' huge army consisting of rogue half-bloods, dracaena, Hyperboreans, Laestrygonians, drakon, Hyperion, telekhines, Typhon, and hellhounds.
It is revealed that Luke had bathed in the River Styx, thus becoming nearly invincible (much like Achilles). Seeking to defeat Kronos, Percy does the same, with some encouragement from Nico. It is also revealed how Nico's mother died, and that the Oracle's foretelling of her death led to Hades cursing the Oracle. Due to this, when Luke's mother attempts to become the Oracle, she loses her mind and is given glimpses of Luke's future. Rachel, a mortal who can see through the Mist, tells Percy that he is not the hero of the Great Prophecy and that it will influence his choice when he turns 16.
Percy and Luke (who is possessed by Kronos) battle at the top of Mount Olympus in the throne room. Luke is shocked back into his normal self when Annabeth reminds him of his promise that he would never harm her. The 'cursed blade' of the prophecy was the knife that Luke gave to Annabeth when he promises her that they are family. The Great Prophecy hinges on Percy's decision to give Luke the dagger rather than kill him. Luke commits suicide by stabbing himself in his mortal point when Kronos takes over his body, becoming the hero of the prophecy and ending the war on Percy's 16th birthday.