For fans of the iconic Percy Jackson books and movies, check out the latest addition to the franchise: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, a brand new series recently released on Disney+. To keep the show as close to the original book series as possible, author Rick Riordan was closely involved in creating this new adaptation. If you are looking to learn more about the series, we have an exclusive interview with Dior Goodjohn, who plays Clarisse La Rue. Clarisse is the strong-willed daughter of the Olympic God Ares. Dior talked to us about her character, the stunts and choreography in the series, the audition process and more.
As always, we will avoid any spoilers for the show in case you haven’t yet watched it but will give our readers a little refresher about its premise. In the series, demigod Percy Jackson leads a quest across America to prevent a war from breaking out among the Olympian gods. Walker Scobell stars as Percy Jackson, Leah Jeffries plays Annabeth Chase and Aryan Simhadri plays Grover Underwood. The show’s first season consisted of eight episodes and received positive reviews from critics and fans. While Dior said she was initially nervous about acting in such an iconic franchise, she remarked how loving and supportive fans have been.
“I wish I would have known how loving everyone was going to be. Not just on set but the fans too.”
Dior first made her acting debut in Season 4 of Glee, portraying a younger version of Naya Rivera’s character Santana Lopez. Since then, she has starred in Nickelodeon’s Are You Afraid of the Dark and her role as Robyn Rook on Head of the Class. In Percy Jackson and the Olympians, her character Clarisse antagonizes Percy in his brief time at Camp Half Blood. She revealed that first putting on the iconic orange Camp Half Blood shirt was a surreal moment.
“It was surreal, I was like stepping into my demigod self.”
We asked Dior about the audition process and she revealed that she did a lot of research in preparing to play Clarisse. She revealed that she read all of the books and also read up on Wiki fandom pages and Reddit forums to learn as much about her character as possible. Dior said her appearance is probably the biggest difference in how Clarisse was portrayed in the books but she tried to stay as true as possible to the original character.
“I did extensive homework because I wanted to make sure I was giving what it was supposed to give considering the difference in appearance. If I am going to audition for this girl, I need to be this girl.”
Thank you, Dior, for your time and for speaking with Young Entertainment! Make sure to follow her on her Instagram at @dior.n.goodjohn. Please also watch the interview, where we ask her more questions about Clarisse, from her get ready with me routine to her current Spotify playlist. While you’re there, be sure to like, comment, and subscribe to our channel for the latest news in young entertainment!
Consider This:
– Research the character you are auditioning for to learn as much as you can about them. Putting in the work beforehand will make you feel more confident on set.
