November 20 Is Officially The Biggest Day For Fantasy Book Fans In 18 Years

Published Oct 14, 2026, 8:00 PM EDT Lewis is a Lead Writer for Screen Rant and has written for the site since 2022. This has allowed Lewis to explore a vast array of films, TV shows, books, comic books, and games from across the mainstream world of pop culture, reflecting his lifelong love of all media and typifying his experience in the world of fiction storytelling. To top this off, Lewis graduated from Northumbria University with First Class Honours in Film & TV Studies, truly exemplifying his experience in the medium. Fantasy book fans have had a lot to chew on recently, but November 20 is officially the biggest date for the genre in a long time. High fantasy books have proven to be excellent foundations for live-action stories, as evidenced by projects like Game of Thrones or the ongoing Harry Potter franchise. Indeed, fantasy TV shows have become commonplace as a result, spawning some of the most beloved of the genre. One source of this has been fantasy young-adult books, with one story in particular carrying the torch of late. That story is Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The Percy Jackson books have long been some of the most popular in modern fandom, with Disney+'s Percy Jackson and the Olympians adapting them for live-action in a way fans could only have dreamed of. The show is particularly revered for its fidelity to the original stories by Rick Riordan, with Disney's production budget allowing that faithfulness to be supported by a huge scale filled with fantasy goodness. Percy Jackson and the Olympians will continue in 2026 with season 3, adapting the third book in the series, Percy Jackson and the Titan's Curse. The installment drops on November 20 on Disney+, making this day a big one for fantasy book fans. Adding to this, another high-profile fantasy series is releasing a new story on that date: The Hunger Games. While slightly more grounded in reality and dystopian tropes, The Hunger Games is up there with Percy Jackson as one of the most popular fantasy book series of the last two decades. On November 20, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will be released in theaters, making the date massive for fans of both franchises or the fantasy genre in general. For the first time in 18 years, since the release of Percy Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth and The Hunger Games, the two franchises are coinciding. Percy Jackson Season 3 Is Continuing A Promising YA Book Trend Image via Disney On the TV side of things, Percy Jackson and the Olympians season 3 is continuing a young-adult book trend that has caused a resurgence in the genre. After a surge of projects based on young-adult books in the late 2000s and early 2010s, this kind of story dwindled, mostly due to diminishing returns. However, the era of streaming TV has changed this, with Percy Jackson and the Olympians leading the line as a truly great young-adult fantasy adaptation. Beyond that, there are other TV projects that have turned the young-adult genre around, too. Netflix's Heartstopper is one such adaptation, as is Prime Video's Off Campus. While both are far from fantasy stories, they are based on book series that were aimed at a younger generation, with both managing to please those fans and newcomers alike. The dedication to getting these kinds of stories right is evident, just as it is with Percy Jackson and the Olympians, thus turning around the fate of the young-adult book adaptation genre. Percy Jackson Gives The Hunger Games A New Future Where The Hunger Games is concerned, November 20 could offer the franchise a new future. Sunrise on the Reaping looks incredibly promising and, if it performs well, will almost certainly lead to new books and adaptations in the series. When taking Percy Jackson and the Olympians into account, it becomes clear that The Hunger Games could also thrive in the TV medium. After all, Sunrise on the Reaping has been confirmed as the longest movie in the series, proving the depth the books have. Such depth has, thus far, been ably adapted by the team behind The Hunger Games' film franchise, but that does not mean a TV show set in the universe could not work. The longer format of TV stories means a more in-depth Hunger Games story could thrive, with the fidelity and quality of projects like Percy Jackson and the Olympians and, seemingly, the upcoming Harry Potter reboot on HBO. Yes, November 20 is huge for fantasy book fans thanks to Percy Jackson season 3 and The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, but the former could extend that by giving the latter an even more promising future. Release Date December 19, 2023 Network Disney+ Showrunner Jonathan E. Steinberg, Dan Shotz Cast Walker Scobell Percy Jackson Leah Sava Jeffries Annabeth Chase