“Percy Jackson” Recasts Courtney B. Vance as Zeus 8 Months After Lance Reddick's Death: 'Can't Tell You How Excited I Am'

In March, Reddick's reps announced that the late actor had died "suddenly" at age 60 from natural causes in a statement shared with PEOPLE

Courtney B. Vance is stepping into a very important role in Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

The actor, 64, has been cast in the Disney+ series as Zeus, the Greek god of the skies. Known for his roles in The Hunt for Red October, The People v. O. J. Simpson: American Crime Story and most recently, FX's Grotesquerie, Vance will take over the role from Lance Reddick, who died in March at age 60 after production wrapped on the show's first season.

Vance addressed the casting news in a statement first shared with Variety, saying, "I can’t tell you how excited I am to join the extraordinary cast of 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians!'"

"There are few moments in an actor’s career when you can honestly say that you’re about to board a series that has such a devoted fan base filled with characters beloved around the world and is based on a wildly successful book series," he continued, adding of Reddick, "I know that stepping into this role of Zeus will be a memorable experience and I’ll be giving my brother, Lance Reddick, who left us way too soon, a heavenly hug."

PEOPLE has reached out to Disney and Vance's reps for comment.

Related: Percy Jackson Creators Share Text Message from the Late Lance Reddick’s Wife and Discuss Recasting Zeus

Based on Rick Riordan's novels of the same name, the series stars newcomers Walker Scobell (Percy), Leah Jeffries (Annabeth) and Aryan Simhadri (Grover). The first season saw Reddick's Zeus accuse Percy of stealing his lightning bolt and send the trio around the country to find it and stop a war from ensuing.

In March, Reddick's reps announced that the late actor had died "suddenly" at age 60 from natural causes in a statement shared with PEOPLE.

"Lance was best known for his roles in The Wire, Bosch, Netflix's Resident Evil and the John Wick films," the statement read. "He is survived by his wife Stephanie Reddick and children Yvonne Nicole Reddick and Christopher Reddick. Lance will be greatly missed. Please respect his family's privacy at this time."

Related: Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 2: All About the Disney+ Show's 'Bigger and Even Better' Second Chapter

At the time of his death, Reddick had a list of projects underway including Percy Jackson, the Jack Harlow-led White Men Can't Jump reboot, Shirley, St. Sebastian and the John Wick spinoff Ballerina.

Percy Jackson season 1 served as Reddick’s final television role. His performance as Zeus touched devoted fans of the beloved series. At the show's Television Critics Association’s winter press tour panel in February, an audience member asked who would be filling Reddick’s role in future episodes.

Co-creator and executive producer Jon Steinberg admitted there was “a little bit of denial” regarding the process of having to replace Reddick.

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“In terms of Lance, I don’t think anybody’s there yet. I think we have a minute, I think, there’s also such a little bit of denial maybe that that’s something that we’re going to have to deal with,” Steinberg said. “But we’re incredibly grateful for this character that he helped build and this presence that he created, and I do not envy whoever ends up having to step in his shoes.”

Season 2 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians will be based on Riordan’s second book in his series, The Sea of Monsters. In the novel, Percy embarks on a dangerous journey to rescue Grover, who is on a quest to find the god Pan but is captured by the same Cyclops that once held Odysseus captive.