Kate McKinnon joins Percy Jackson season 3 as Aphrodite

Kate McKinnon will join the third season of the Disney streaming series Percy Jackson and the Olympians in a recurring role as Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love and beauty, producers said Wednesday. The casting comes as production on Season 3 is underway in Vancouver, while Season 2 is scheduled to premiere on December 10.

According to the series' character description, McKinnon's Aphrodite can change her appearance depending on the beholder and will withhold aid to Percy Jackson until she is convinced he understands the power and importance of love. Season 3 will adapt The Titan's Curse, the third book in Rick Riordan's middle grade series, marking the first screen adaptation of that installment. Plot details beyond the casting announcement were limited.

McKinnon, best known for her decade on Saturday Night Live from 2012 to 2022, brings a mix of comedy and dramatic credits to the role. She received 10 Emmy nominations during her SNL tenure and won two. Her film and television credits include Bombshell, Yesterday, the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, and Greta Gerwig's Barbie, in which she played Weird Barbie. More recently she portrayed Carole Baskin in the limited series Joe vs....