For fans of Rick Riordan's books, the arrival of Nico and Bianca di Angelo in Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 3 is a long-awaited moment. The siblings are central to The Titan's Curse, and their dynamic is one of the most beloved parts of the story. But before the big plot beats can land, the audience has to believe in their bond — and that's exactly what Olive Abercrombie and Levi Chrisopulos worked hard to create.
Abercrombie, who plays Bianca, recently opened up to Collider about how she and Chrisopulos (Nico) prepared for their roles. She admitted she hadn't read the books before being cast, but once she got the part, she dove into the entire series — including The Heroes of Olympus and part of The Trials of Apollo. What stood out most was the relationship between the two siblings.
“A big thing for me is definitely Nico and Bianca’s sibling dynamic and their bond. That was definitely my favorite part of the book, so I want to do it justice and bring it to life,” Abercrombie said.
To build that chemistry, their acting coach, Andrew McElroy, had them try some unconventional exercises. The most memorable? Pressing their foreheads together and delivering lines while staring into each other's eyes. “He had a bunch of kind of awkward things just to get us to get to know each other better and get the dynamic, like we would just put our foreheads together and just like stare into each other’s eyes menacingly and say our lines,” Abercrombie revealed.
It sounds like a challenge to keep a straight face, but the technique clearly worked. The actors also spent time together off set, grabbing dinners and hanging out whenever they could. “We also tried to hang out offset as much as possible just to kind of be more comfortable around each other,” she said. “So, just getting dinner all the time, hanging out off of set as much as possible. And now we’re maybe a little too much like siblings, we bicker all the time.”
That bickering is a good sign — it means the actors have found the perfect mix of affection and irritation that defines real sibling relationships. It's that authenticity that will make Nico and Bianca's story resonate with viewers.
When asked who was hardest to get through a scene with without laughing, Abercrombie didn't point at Chrisopulos. Instead, she nominated herself, describing how she has to mentally coach herself during intense moments: “I’m just like, 'Lock in, Olive, lock in.'” After all those forehead-to-forehead rehearsals, she's had plenty of practice staying focused.
Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 3 premieres on Disney+ on November 20. For more on the series, check out our season 3 trailer breakdown and stay tuned for more exclusive interviews.
