Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
American theatrical release poster
Directed by	Chris Columbus
Screenplay by	Craig Titley
Based on	The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Produced by	Karen Rosenfelt Chris Columbus Michael Barnathan Mark Radcliffe
Starring	Logan Lerman Brandon T. Jackson Alexandra Daddario Sean Bean Pierce Brosnan Steve Coogan Rosario Dawson Catherine Keener Kevin McKidd Joe Pantoliano Uma Thurman
Cinematography	Stephen Goldblatt
Edited by	Peter Honess
Music by	Christophe Beck
Production companies	Fox 2000 Pictures Dune Entertainment 1492 Pictures Sunswept Entertainment
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release dates	February 2, 2010 (Canada) February 12, 2010 (United States)
Running time	119 minutes[1]
Countries	United Kingdom[2] United States[2]
Language	English
Budget	$95 million[3][4]
Box office	$226.4 million[4]

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (also known as Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief) is a 2010 action fantasy film directed by Chris Columbus and written by Craig Titley, based on the 2005 novel The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. The film is the first installment in the Percy Jackson film series. It stars Logan Lerman as Percy Jackson alongside an ensemble cast that includes Brandon T. Jackson, Alexandra Daddario, Sean Bean, Pierce Brosnan, Steve Coogan, Rosario Dawson, Catherine Keener, Kevin McKidd, Joe Pantoliano, and Uma Thurman.

In 2004 20th Century Fox acquired the film rights to the book series. In 2007 Chris Columbus was hired to direct. Filming began April 2009 in Vancouver. Some shots were filmed in Tennessee and Las Vegas, and some exterior scenes were shot in New York.

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief was released theatrically in the United States on February 12, 2010, by 20th Century Fox.^[5] The film received mixed reviews from critics, with criticism for the poor grasp of its source material and its script, but praise for Lerman and Jackson's performances, visual effects, and action sequences. The film grossed $226.4 million worldwide against a production budget of $95 million.^[4] It was released on June 29, 2010 on DVD^[6] and Blu-ray Disc.^[7] A video game based on the film was released for Nintendo DS on February 11, 2010. A sequel, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, was released on August 7, 2013.

Plot[edit]

At the top of the Empire State Building, Zeus meets his brother Poseidon and accuses Poseidon's demigod son, Percy Jackson, of stealing his master lightning bolt. Poseidon reminds Zeus that Percy is unaware of his true identity, but Zeus declares that unless the bolt is returned to Mount Olympus before midnight of the Summer Solstice in two weeks, war will be waged between all the gods.

A 16-year-old Percy struggles with dyslexia and ADHD for long periods. On a school trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Percy is attacked by Alecto, a Fury masquerading as his substitute English teacher Mrs. Dodds, who demands the bolt. Percy's best friend Grover Underwood and his Latin teacher Mr. Brunner help scare off Alecto. Mr. Brunner gives Percy a pen which he claims is a very powerful cosmic weapon, and instructs Grover to take Percy and his mother Sally to Camp Half-Blood — a secret sanctuary for demigod children on Long Island, leaving behind Sally's abusive husband and Percy's stepfather, Gabe Ugliano. There, they are attacked by the Minotaur, who seemingly kills Percy's mother. Percy discovers that Mr. Brunner's pen is a magical sword, and uses it to fight off the Minotaur, killing it with its own horn.

Waking up three days later, Percy learns he is Poseidon’s son, Grover is a satyr and Percy’s protector, and Mr. Brunner is Chiron, a centaur. He starts coming into his latent demigod powers, which include hydrokinesis and healing, and meets other demigods, including Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena; and the camp's leader Luke Castellan, son of Hermes. Percy is visited by an apparition of Hades, who reveals that the Minotaur abducted Sally to the Underworld to trade for the bolt. Defying Chiron's orders, Percy sets out for the Underworld with Grover and Annabeth. Luke gives Percy a map with the location of three green pearls belonging to Hades' wife, Persephone, which will allow them to escape the Underworld. Percy is also given a pair of flying winged Converse All-Stars stolen from Hermes, and Luke's favorite shield. Meanwhile, Percy is declared a missing person.

At a garden center in New Jersey, with help from Grover and Annabeth, Percy manages to decapitate Medusa and takes the first pearl from her corpse. At the Parthenon in Nashville, Percy uses the shoes to retrieve the second pearl from the crown of a statue of Athena there, and Grover kills a Hydra with Medusa's head. The trio arrives at the Lotus Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas to obtain the third pearl; however, they forget their mission after eating lotus flowers, the effects from which causes them to lose a sense of time. Percy snaps out of the spell after hearing the voice of Poseidon through telepathy telling him not to eat any more flowers. Percy frees Grover and Annabeth from the flowers' effects; they locate the final pearl in the casino and escape. Unfortunately, they only have one day left to prevent the war, as they were in the casino for almost a week. They discover that the Underworld is in Hollywood and race there. With all three pearls, Percy, Grover, and Annabeth enter the portal to the Underworld upon arriving in Hollywood.