Who Is Walker Scobell? All About the 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians' Star (2024)

Walker Scobell will soon be a household name.

The teenage actor found his love of performing at a young age and soon began starring in school shows and attending drama classes. When it comes to professional debuts, Scobell really hit the jackpot: His first-ever acting job came in 2022, when he played a young Ryan Reynolds in the star-studded sci-fi hit The Adam Project.

According to Netflix's Tudum, casting director Carmen Cuba auditioned 376 kids, but the team knew right after his chemistry read with Reynolds that Scobell was the one.

"The second sentence out of [Walker's] mouth, I looked at Shawn Levy, my co-producer and director, and just said, 'That's our guy,' '' Reynolds said on the Today show.

Now, Scobell is taking the small screen as Percy Jackson in the new Disney+ series Percy Jackson and the Olympians, which premiered on Dec. 19, 2023.

Rick Riordan, author of the Percy Jackson book series, said that he and the Disney+ casting directors were blown away by Scobell's audition tapes.

"Many of you recently discovered how great Walker is when you watched his movie The Adam Project, in which Walker lit up the screen as a younger version of Ryan Reynolds' character," Riordan wrote on his website. "It was obvious to me and the rest of the team that Walker had the perfect mix of comedic timing, sweetness, rebelliousness, snark and heroism to embody our hero Percy Jackson."

Scobell — who has "seen both movies and read all the books" in the Percy Jackson saga — told PEOPLE that he had a mix of emotions when he learned he was cast. "I was really excited, but I was a little bit nervous too. I didn't want to let anybody down, you know?" he said. "It's a massive fan base."

From discovering his acting chops to playing extreme sports, here's everything to know about Walker Scobell.

He grew up in a military family

Scobell grew up in a military family, moving throughout his childhood whenever his father, Lt. Pete Scobell, was deployed somewhere new. The teenage actor has lived all over the country, including in California, Colorado and Pennsylvania.

Pete is a former U.S. Navy SEAL who served for 17 years. He has spoken about his experiences as part of the All American Entertainment Speakers Bureau and discussed his service with The NAPA Network in 2015.

He has a close relationship with his mom

The Percy Jackson star has a close bond with his mom, Heather. In an interview with J-14 Magazine, the actor revealed that he and his mom text frequently.

"Every time I go on a trip without her, she texts me like every second asking if I'm okay and that she misses me," he explained. "She's the best."

While he was filming The Adam Project in Canada, his mom made sure that she was always awake to send her son a goodnight text.

"[When I was in] in Vancouver, she'll wait until I go to bed to text me, even though it's way later there," he added.

He began acting in elementary school

Scobell first discovered his love for acting during elementary school, where he took drama classes. He then went on to perform in his middle school plays and even attended acting workshops led by Cory in the House and SeaQuest DSV actor John D'Aquino.

He's a fan of superhero movies

Scobell loves superhero movies, his favorites being Avengers: Endgame and Deadpool. The young actor even recited Deadpool's R-rated speech during a break in filming with the antihero himself.

"Introducing @Walker.Scobell," Reynolds captioned a video of Scobell performing the expletive-filled monologue. "This innocent young boy plays 12 year old me in my upcoming @netflix film. And because he takes his job seriously, the role required significant research."

The father of three added, "No matter what, he's WAY too young to know this monologue by heart."

He's a prankster

The actor loves to joke around and pull pranks — so of course, he pranked his jokester costar on the Adam Project set.

In an interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in 2022, the actor told host Ellen DeGeneres how he tried to scare Reynolds.

"I would always hide behind the set pieces and jump out and try to scare him," he revealed. "But after like a month of that he just walked through and be like, 'Hi, Walker.' "

He plays adventure sports

The teen is also a fan of extreme sports — including skateboarding, snowboarding and parkour. Scobell takes after his dad, who is also a big sports fan and became a professional skier after retiring from the Navy, according to Ski Magazine.

In January 2020, Scobell shared footage of himself performing some next-level parkour in Newport Beach, California. He later showed off his skateboarding skills in New Jersey's Ocean City Skatepark, and an impressed Jennifer Garner — who played his mom in The Adam Project — liked the post.

The actor has also tried martial arts and indoor skydiving.

He wrapped season 1 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians in February 2023

In February 2023, Scobell posted a video confirming that he had finished filming the first season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

In the clip, Scobell is underwater and holding a sign that reads: "That's a wrap! PJO season 1."

Produced by Disney, Percy Jackson and the Olympians is set to follow the titular 12-year-old modern demigod as he comes to terms with his newfound supernatural powers. After Zeus accuses him of stealing his master lightning bolt, Percy treks across the U.S. to find the bolt, clear his name and restore order to Olympus.

Percy Jackson author Rick Riordan was truly impressed by Scobell's performance in the new series

While talking to Entertainment Weekly about the series in December 2023, Riordan praised Scobell for the way he embodied the character.

“The whole team is in agreement: Walker Scobell was born for this part,” Riordan said. “Don't get me wrong, he's incredibly talented. I'm sure he was born for a lot of roles! But he really is perfect for this. He has that voice down so well, and he embodies who Percy is.”