- “Am I unclaimed? No, Hermes is my father. That doesn't matter, we're all on the same team here... Spend too much time trying to figure out why the gods do whatever they do, you'll drive yourself crazy. Sooner you stop worrying about that, the sooner you can enjoy what this place actually does offer.”
- ―Luke conversing with Percy[src]
Luke Castellan is the secondary antagonist of the Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians. He is the son of Hermes and an older demigod at Camp Half-Blood. However, he is also in league with Kronos, jaded by the gods and part of a wider scheme to destroy the world.
Background[]
Personality[]
Luke comes off as a friendly and observant young teen. Being one of the older demigods at Camp Half-Blood, he is full of a surprising amount of wisdom that he is not afraid to show off. He is supportive of the younger, less experienced demigods like Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.
However, there is also a more ruthless and vengeful side to Luke. He has become disillusioned by his father and the Gods in general due to their actions, making him resentful and rebellious. Due to his resentment, Kronos successfully manipulated him into betraying the Gods and siding with him. After linking up with Kronos, he works to ensure to release him, which involves him stealing Zeus's Lightning Bolt and deceitfully framing Percy, while also misleading Percy and Annabeth during their quest.
However, despite his actions, he still cares for Percy and Annabeth, he does feel remorse for betraying Percy, and he still sees him as his friend. After his betrayal is revealed, he expresses remorse by claiming that he never intended to betray him. He then states the Gods are his real enemies, before trying to recruit him to his side. After defeating him, he looks hesitant to finish him off before being caught by Annabeth.
Physical appearance[]
Luke resembles a tall teenage boy of mixed heritage, light, tan skin and short, curly black hair. Additionally, he has a noticeable healed over scar on the left side of his face. He is usually wearing his orange Camp Half-Blood shirt and occasionally dons helmet and armor when taking part in the camp games.
Prelude[]
Luke Castellan is the son of Hermes and May Castellan. Through a variety of complex means, May suffered from a hysterical traumatizing event that soured the relationship between Luke and Hermes. Despite the god wanting to make amends, nothing could repair the damage done to young Luke. At some point, Luke joined up with Grover Underwood and Thalia Grace, and later Annabeth Chase, and headed to Camp Half-Blood. Thalia gave her life to save the others and became the tree that bordered the camp. This further soured Luke's views of the gods and would lead to him. Sensing his anger, Kronos made contact with him. He used Luke's frustration with the Gods to manipulate him into betraying them, siding with him, and helping him eventually escape his prison (Tartarus). As part of Kronos' plan, Luke stole Zeus' Master Bolt to create a war between him and his brother Poseidon. He then teamed up with Ares and gave the Bolt to him for the time being.
Role in the series[]
The Lightning Thief[]
He met Percy Jackson who was brought to camp and ended up in the Hermes cabin due to not knowing who his godly parent was. Luke showed a sympathetic side to Percy and welcomed him with open arms, helping him get used to his new surroundings, although unknown to Percy, this was part of Luke's plan to gain his trust. They were on the same team playing capture the flag where Luke put his faith in Annabeth to ensure their win. He eventually began to treat Percy as a true friend. When Percy set out to find the Master Bolt, he enacted the next part of his plan by giving him a pair of shoes with wings on them, under the deceptive guise of helping him. Unknown to Percy, Luke planned on getting the bolt in his possession through Ares, and the shoes would forcibly drag him and the bolt down to Tartarus so that Kronos could get it.
Luke continued with Kronos's plan to make Zeus and Poseidon go to war. Ares hid the Master Bolt in a backpack given to Percy on his quest. Luke later deceptively misled the trio into believing that Ares' daughter Clarisse La Rue was the one who stole the bolt.
What Luke did not count on, however, was Percy giving the shoes to Grover, which was what Percy did. When the winged shoes dragged Grover down into the Pit of Tartarus once they reached the Underworld, Percy saved him from falling in, ultimately foiling his plans.
Percy confronting Luke over his betrayal.
When Percy, Annabeth, and Grover returned from their successful quest, Luke still deceptively led the three into believing that Clarisse had stolen the Bolt. However, Percy later realized that Luke was the one behind the theft. Luke admitted that he never intended to betray him, as he felt that Percy proved that he was just as determined as he was and asked that he join him in his quest to destroy the gods. Percy refused and tried to stop him, but Luke refused to listen. Percy then mentioned he met Luke's Dad, which set Luke off and led to him attacking him. While Percy wounded Luke with a strike, he then apologized, which allowed Luke to knock him down. A hesitant Luke then prepared to finish him off, but was stopped by Annabeth, who witnessed everything, much to his shock. Realizing that he had forever hurt two of his friends, Luke fled, still determined to punish the gods.
Trivia[]
- In prior adaptations, Luke was depicted as being white with blond hair (like in the books) in the films and was Afro-Latino in the Broadway musical. This is the first time he is portrayed as being mixed (Costa-Rican/Japanese/Irish).
- Prior to Charlie Bushnell portraying him, Luke was played by Jake Abel in the films and James Hayden Rodriguez (who also played Ares, Gabe Ugliano, and the Minotaur) in the Broadway musical.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Percy Jackson and the Olympians - 1x03 - We Visit the Garden Gnome Emporium (1).jpg (179 KB)")
External links[]
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