How 'Percy Jackson' cyclops Tyson got that eye from star Daniel Diemer Bryan Alexander, USA TODAYDecember 12, 2025 at 1:01 AM 0 LOS ANGELES — Daniel Diemer was destined to play the oneeyed cyclops, Tyson, in Season 2 of "Percy Jackson and the Olympians." Thanks to some cuttingedge tech help, the actor's eyes (both of them) were even used for the mythological monster's giant peeper.
- - How 'Percy Jackson' cyclops Tyson got that eye from star Daniel Diemer
Bryan Alexander, USA TODAYDecember 12, 2025 at 1:01 AM
0
LOS ANGELES — Daniel Diemer was destined to play the one-eyed cyclops, Tyson, in Season 2 of "Percy Jackson and the Olympians." Thanks to some cutting-edge tech help, the actor's eyes (both of them) were even used for the mythological monster's giant peeper.
The 6-foot-5-inch star of Netflix's 2020 drama "The Half of It" had his eyes (and eyebrows) scanned "thousands and thousands" of times to create Tyson's eye — and that monster monobrow — through computer-generated imagery for the Disney+ series (now streaming the first two episodes of the sophomore season).
"They're taking that eye straight from me," Diemer, 29, tells USA TODAY. "This technology uses both my eyes and combines them into one."
Daniel Diemer as cyclops Tyson in Season 2 of "Percy Jackson and the Olympians."
After show producers pondered how to effectively render Tyson's can't-miss eye, the famed special effects company Industrial Light & Magic developed the novel ocular approach. No VFX tracking markers are needed.
"I just act out each scene, and the computer scans my eyes for the look, emotion, and motion, and then transposes that to the one eye," says Diemer, who will continue shooting Season 3 of the series in Vancouver after the Season 2 world promotional tour ends.
"No one's ever done it like this before," executive producer Jonathan E. Steinberg says of the cyclops eye technology. "This solution brings an emotional performance from (Diemer's) two eyes. There are a million cues you're getting from someone's eyes, all happening in one eye here."
While the unibrow is humorous and necessary, the wildly expressive eye gives Tyson that all-seeing emotional punch.
"One eyebrow is inherently less expressive than two, so the performance comes from the eye itself," says executive producer James Bobin, who directed the first two episodes. "The empathy for Tyson is from Daniel and the ILM team."
Daniel Diemer stars as cyclops Tyson in "Percy Jackson and the Olympians."Why Diemer was destined to play Tyson, the cyclops son of Poseidon
Both Percy Jackson (Walker Scobell) and Tyson are the sons of the Greek god Poseidon, making the duo half-brothers. In Homer's Odyssey, Polyphemus, the Cyclops, is a son of Poseidon, which carries over to the show.
As the fates would have it, Diemer has had a lifelong obsession with Poseidon, as evidenced by his prominent trident necklace, the iconic emblem and weapon of the sea god.
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" src=https://ift.tt/akheuVd class=caas-img>'Percy Jackson and the Olympians'
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Disney+, Dec. 10: Young stars Leah Sava' Jefffries and Walker Scobell will tackle a "Sea of Monsters" in book adaptation "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" Season 2.
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'Percy Jackson and the Olympians'
Disney+, Dec. 10: Young stars Leah Sava' Jefffries and Walker Scobell will tackle a "Sea of Monsters" in book adaptation "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" Season 2.
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Disney+, Dec. 10: Young stars Leah Sava' Jefffries and Walker Scobell will tackle a "Sea of Monsters" in book adaptation "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" Season 2.
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1 / 10These are the 10 TV shows you should watch this fall
Fall TV season is fast arriving on all your streaming services and networks, and there are dozens of shows premiering, that are new, old and something in between. As you get cozy in your sweaters and with your pumpkin spice lattes, some of the biggest shows of the decade will be returning for new seasons, new series will be trying to capture your attention and new spinoffs will try to convince you everything old is new again. First up: 'NCIS: Tony & Ziva' (Paramount+, Sept. 4): Michael Weatherly (Tony) and Cote de Pablo (Ziva) return to their star-making "NCIS" roles in this spy caper spinoff featuring Isla Gie as their daughter Tali.
"I've had this for years," says Diemer. "The Greek gods and mythology have been a huge part of my life for so long, and I've loved the 'Percy Jackson' books since I was 13. I even named my personal company Poseidon Entertainment."
Diemer's height and build — and his experience playing a klutzy football player in the coming-of-age Netflix movie "The Half of It" — also helped him embody kind-hearted, lumbering Tyson.
"With one eye, the depth perception is going to be off, so I'm going to move more carefully, especially when moving fast," says Diemer. "It's a fine line to honor the monster with this physicality and also not make it comedic."
Tyson's backstory will be revealed in 'Percy Jackson'
Tyson is Percy's loyal protector everywhere — from high school class to New York City streets, to riding shotgun on his friend's chariot. But cyclops are feared, and no monster is allowed in Camp Half-Blood. Demigod Annabeth Chase (Leah Sava Jeffries), the daughter of Athena, is particularly distrustful of cyclops. "In the books, many characters have traumas around cyclops, so Tyson is very much of an outcast," says Diemer.
The once-homeless orphan's backstory will be fleshed out in Season 2.
"The series brings that story to the surface more. He went through some dark years," says Diemer. "Tyson was homeless for like seven years without a dad or mom to protect him. The book talks about scars, and we show them. By series end, you'll see what he needed to do to survive, and how his loving protectiveness came to be."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is 'Percy Jackson' cyclops Tyson? 'Half of It' star Daniel Diemer
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Source: Entertainment
Published: December 11, 2025 at 07:46PM on Source: MARIO MAG
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