Playing the Satyr character Grover in Percy Jackson And The Olympians brought up some forgotten memories from Aryan Simhadri’s childhood.
In a recent roundtable interview, the leading cast of Percy Jackson And The Olympians has been chatting about being cast in the series. Aryan Simhadri, who plays a Satyr named Grover, has revealed that playing the role unearthed a forgotten memory from his childhood. It’s a memory that shows that he and his character have some unexpected similarities, too.
A Satyr is a creature in Greek mythology that has the torso of a man and the lower half of a goat. In order to get the Grover’s physicality right, Simhadri had to walk like him – on the balls of his feet. That was something he had no problem doing. “When I was a kid, I used to walk on the balls of my foot all the time for whatever reason when I was like, like four or five,” the actor revealed.
“I still hadn’t read the books by this point and my parents had to get me to walk normally, like they were constantly telling me to put my heel on the ground. And, you know, however many years later I have to walk like that again for Grover and I completely forgot that I used to walk like that as a kid and now I’m doing it again. So, you know, it’s kind of a full circle moment.”
Percy Jackson And The Olympians is adapted from the books by author Rick Riordan. He also serves as a co-creator and executive producer on the show. The series follows the titular Percy (Walker Scobell) as he discovers he’s the son of a Greek god and is sent on a grand quest. Accompanying him are Simhadri’s Grover and Leah Sava Jeffries’ Annabeth Chase, a fellow Demigod.
Simhadri also revealed his surprise at being cast in the role. He recalls a friend sending him the casting call and immediately thinking “I’m not going to get this, I probably won’t submit.”
After receiving information on the show from his agents as well, he decided to audition after all, but “as a joke.” He elaborated that it would be “good practice because it’s such an iconic role. Grover is one of the main three, and these books almost raised me. And so I grew up looking up to these three and looking up to Grover and I was like, ‘Oh yeah, this is for someone else. There’s no way I’m gonna get this.”
Simhadri has also had a role in Disney’s 2022 remake of Cheaper By The Dozen, acting alongside Gabrielle Union and Zach Braff. He’s also credited on The Spongebob Movie: Sponge On The Run and Adventure Time: Distant Lands.
Percy Jackson And The Olympians has eight episodes that are streaming weekly on Disney+. They follow the story of the first book in Riordan’s series, The Lightning Thief. Writing for a second season started in March this year, but future seasons haven’t been greenlit yet.
Episodes of Percy Jackson And The Olympians are streaming on Wednesdays on Disney+.
