Contrary to what most Greek mythology adaptations not unlike Percy Jackson and the Olympians show, Hades is not a bad guy. Hades is merely the God of the Underworld who serves as the caretaker of the souls of the dead, not evil incarnate. Unfortunately, Hades' profession—combined with endless retellings of how Hades kidnapped his wife/niece, Persephone—often resulted in multiple negative-to-semi-Satanic depictions of him. These include but are not limited to the firey-haired snake-oil schmoozer of Disney's Hercules, a vengeful schemer in the DCAU's Justice League, and the Clash of the Titans remake. Even the original Percy Jackson movie fell into this trap to some degree, despite Rick Riordan's books portraying Hades as a more neutral and honorable, albeit grim and bitter, deity among the Pantheon. Thankfully, Jay Duplass' interpretation in Percy Jackson and the Olympians remained more faithful to the books' original and better interpretation.

CBR recently spoke to Duplass about the challenges of playing Hades as a more multifaceted character, despite his limited screen time in Percy Jackson and the Olympian's penultimate episode. The Transparent star also talked about his time studying Roman and Greek mythology in school, working on the Volume set with Walker Scobell, and uncovering the human side of the Greek gods in his "first big magical realism performance."

How did you first learn about, or first read, the Percy Jackson books?

Jay Duplass: "I have a 15-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son, and it's their favorite piece of art that's ever been made across all mediums. My kids have read the entire series at least five times. So I have been reading the books... I have been listening to audiobooks on road trips. I have been hearing audiobooks as they go to sleep, that's our little lullaby to our kids. You know, we do their nighttime routine and we hit play. And for years and years, it was Percy Jackson.

So I know a lot about it and when I heard that the series was being made and that Rick [Riordan] was going to be really centered in the creative expression of the show, I felt right away that I needed to be on this show. I have mostly been in adult stuff as an actor and this will be the best thing for my kids, and me if I can be in it. It's pretty nuts. My kids are already calling me Hades.

Of course, every time they re-read the books, they'll hear Hades in your voice. That'll be kind of weird.

Duplass: Yeah, that's right. I'm going to really dominate them all over again. They've shunned me now because they're older but I'm going to work my way back in through this character.

Compared to most of the Greek gods we've seen in this show, like Dionysius and Hermes, Hades does have an outsized presence in pop culture. Though more often than not he's portrayed as a villain -- most notably James Woods' animated version in Hercules -- while in the mythology, Hades is a bit aloof and stubborn, but he's not really malevolent. How did this impact your approach to the character, or did you throw a few, shall we say Woodsisms into the performance?

Duplass: Yeah, you're right that he's culturally present outside the story across all mediums. And I was telling someone earlier that I went to a five-year classics Jesuit high school and studied Roman and Greek mythology and took five years of Latin. So I've definitely had my time spent with Hades as an idea.

But for the show itself, I think the most important thing to me... well, I got the script, and it felt really grounded. And I think that's what I've been enjoying about the show so much, so far, and what my kids are loving about it so much is that it's... obviously, we're in a fantastical world, but the interactions feel very, very grounded, and from what Dan [Shotz] and Jonathan [Steinberg] and Rick were communicating to me is like... they wanted me to inhabit a real being who was complicated and had a lot of his own s--- going on. I kind of just let the wardrobe and the script and the position... which has been wild to me. It's like, "Oh right, the whole journey of the first season comes to me." I've let that do its work and on the day, I really just tried to inhabit a person who's lonely and living in the Underworld and has some freaking agendas to handle, but also is excited to hang out with a couple of people for a minute.

So I didn't feel the pressure to play, like, one thing. Which was such a blessing as an actor, to play a lot of things going on at once. And I had real furniture that I was lounging about on in between setups and stuff. But at the same time, we were on a Volume stage where, for 360 degrees, I was looking at... basically the Underworld and living in it. It was pretty great to just settle in and let it become what it wanted to become.

Another thing most people might not realize about Hades is that he's the eldest of the original male Greek Gods. So he does come off as the older brother, rolling his eyes at Zeus and Poseidon’s squabbling over the Master Bolt’s theft. Would you say that's accurate in your performance, or is there a bit more to Hades' relationship with his brothers than that?

Duplass: That's a really good question. You know, the one thing that is inherent to Hades' plight is that he's stuck. He's really stuck down there so... I'm certainly no stranger to watching your brother do great things and get praised for doing great things, so I'm sure that was baked into the performance at times. But the main thing that I was working with was just the plight that I was in, as opposed to being directly in relationship with those brothers. But I think that is also part of the scenario. The plight is directly related to those relationships and how things have played out. And I definitely think he feels like he doesn't necessarily hate them, but he got the short end in some ways.

Your scene takes full advantage of the Volume to make Hades' palace feel epic, yet also really lonely. Even as the scene slowly reveals that everyone, demigod and God alike, have been tricked by a more sinister force at play: Kronos. What was it like working alongside Walker Scobell and Aryan Simhadri, and was it easy to play off them during these big reveals?

Duplass: Yeah, those kids are great actors. They're really cool kids, they're great actors, they were surprisingly relaxed and centered after... I don't know, they were probably there for seven or eight months by the time I got there. So they were really grounded and knew exactly what they were doing, and they really set the tone as much as Jon and Rick and Dan did, and they were... I mean I think that's what I'm loving about the series so much. It just feels really personal, and it feels really human, their journey. Because I think a lot of times with fantastical pieces of art, people lose the humanity because there's so much exciting, gorgeous, wild stuff going on and everything's beautiful. So those kids were great, and I liked hanging out with them for a week, which is a lot to say for kids. Because I've got my own kids, I don't need any more kids in my life, but they're lovely and just great actors. And you know, I think it's a testament to the environment that they create because, even though we're making a giant series, it felt like a family. It felt like a really small group of people very focused on making a very personal piece of art.

Agreed. For all the mythology and monster fights in this show, Percy Jackson is mainly about a guy trying to get his mom back.

Duplass: Yeah, and that was not lost on me too. When I first walked onto the set, I saw his mom frozen behind me, and it was very detailed, very upfront, and very close and personal. And it got me. I was like "Oh man, this kid's going to have to walk up and do this scene with his mom over my shoulder." And she's a part of that scene, and they're just very considered, very well-prepared. Everything they do is very intentional, very considered, like that's what's important to know. That this woman is in this room and that's what is at stake. I don't know, it just felt very focused, like everything had its purpose.

And you can tell by the end that Hades is worried about what Kronos' return means for Olympus and the world. He was, after all, swallowed by his dad, so he knows how bad things can get. But his reaction and subsequent proposal to Percy demonstrate a mix of concern and self-interest. What would you think was going through Hades' head when this big revelation became clear to him?

Duplass: First of all, I was pretty psyched to have this scene with his mom in the room, but also have this moment about Kronos that lays down the gauntlet for what's to come. I think it kind of goes part in parcel with your question of how it's played and, you know, I do think Hades is excited to have some company, just like enjoy a little bit of face time. But he's clearly got an agenda and I think... I don't know. It's just exciting to play all these different things and to work with it. To be strategic about it, to have a lot going on while it's happening. It's not something that I necessarily expected from my first big magical realism performance. You know, it just felt real human, where a lot of stakes were there for me as well. Like, obviously Hades, for Percy, he is the goal of the entire first season journey and his mother is right there and that's what we're aiming towards. But it was pretty exciting to be able to play my own stakes as well.

True, and those who read the Percy Jackson books will know Hades plays a larger role in Percy's life down the line, especially once Nico and Bianca di Angelo are introduced. But is there any particular scene you want to see with Hades, should Disney hopefully renew the show for more seasons?

Duplass: Yeah I was actually just talking to my kids this morning. I was just trying to remember exactly how Hades plays back into it as it goes and... I don't know. It all seems really fun. We were talking about how he plays into the dreams quite a bit. I don't know if there's any one scene in particular that I'm looking forward to, but I had a surprising amount of fun playing him, and it felt full and lived in. So I'll go as far as they want to go with it.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is now streaming on Disney+.