Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief was a decent enough hit when it hit theaters in early 2010, though bringing in $88 million domestically isn't exactly a slam dunk (it made up most of its budget overseas). There were rumblings earlier this year that Fox was enthusiastic enough about the film to go forth with a sequel, and now the studio has gotten star Logan Lerman involved in the action. The LA Times reports that the studio has "exercised its option" on the actor, which sounds horribly threatening and 1984-ish, but basically means they have the power to force him back for a sequel, and now they're taking advantage of it.

They've also brought in a new director, Thor Freudenthal, who had a good-sized hit with Diary of a Wimpy Kid and will take over for Chris Columbus, who is sticking around as a producer. They're trying to move quickly, both given the fact that Lerman is already 19 and probably eager to move on from kid roles, and that the kid audience who are fans of the Percy Jackson series tend to grow up fast. The first movie definitely didn't cement the story as a Harry Potter-sized hit, the kind of thing that will keep audience attention no matter how old they get, but as the Times points out, Harry Potter is almost finished, and we've got to get our kid fantasy adventure kicks somewhere. If all goes according to plan, the next Percy Jackson could be in theaters as early as 2012-- soon enough after the final Harry Potter to help ease us out of our mourning period.