Francis Lawrence Talks Finnick, Haymitch, and Gary Ross
In a recent interview with MTV, “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” director Francis Lawrence sat down to talk about Finnick, Haymitch, and the challenge of taking over the franchise from previous director, Gary Ross.
“I liked what Gary did a lot, but I have a different style than he does,” Lawrence explained. “So it was very easy for me to come in the room and sit down with the people involved in the movie and sort of say, ‘Here’s what I like about what Gary did that I would latch on to and hold onto and embrace, and here’s the way I would do it differently.’ The trickier thing, honestly for me, was sort of stepping into a world, and there’s crew members that were on the first movie, obviously an entire cast, all the people that are returning that I inherited. I was nervous about what they were going to feel… I think everybody in general was really gracious and worked really hard and ended up being really fun to work with. I think there were a couple of people that were really bummed that Gary wasn’t doing it, and it had less to do with the choice of me coming on than just Gary not doing it. They signed on with Gary; they’re friends with Gary; they like Gary. And I think there was definitely some sadness there.”
When Lawrence inherited “The Hunger Games” franchise he also inherited the responsibility of casting “Catching Fire”‘s most anticipated dream boat: District 4 tribute Finnick Odair. For a while there, it seemed every working actor under the age of 35 was rumored to be in contention, but it was “Snow White and the Huntsman” star Sam Claflin who would ultimately wield the trident. Many fans were none-to-sure about Claflin’s casting, but Lawrence ensured the 26-year-old will live up to expectations.
“[Claflin] is very athletic, which is great. He’s in great shape. He’s very charismatic,” Lawrence said. “But I was also looking in the long term. There’s kind of a rouge-like quality to him in this book. And long term, he’s actually an emotional character and a very loyal character and a character who’s in love; a character who experienced quite a lot of sadness. And he was really able to tap into that, as well as being really charming and sexy and handsome as hell.”
Another item on Lawrence’s to-do list was to sit down with actor Woody Harrelson to further refine his approach to alcoholic District 12 mentor Haymitch Abernathy. Harrelson had previously told MTV News that he had pushed for more drunkenness than Ross would allow—something which, along with Haymitch’s post-traumatic stress disorder, the director and actor took a closer look at.
“One of the things that we wanted to dive into a little more… is the whole idea of PTSD, and one of the big things for [author] Suzanne[Collins] is just sort of the idea of the consequences of war as kind of one of the backbone theme of the entire series,” Lawrence said. “One of the things I really like about this book is you start to see kind of why Haymitch is the way he is, why people are the way they are, so he and I did a fair amount of work in terms of that, in terms of understanding PTSD and how to work with somebody with post-traumatic stress. Also we started messing around a lot with some real humanity in Haymitch because he can be quite cynical and sarcastic at times. But I think there’s a more human side to him in this one as well.”
You can read the rest of the article here.
Awesome read. It’s great that they’re giving fans a lot of insight into how the new films will be different from the first – managing expectations and also giving us more confidence in their choices even before we see Catching Fire. It’s a good way to calm worries about Gary Ross’ departure.
Really interested in seeing what they do with Haymitch!
I can’t wait. He really has been working hard on the right things!
I’m so excited to see what will Francis Lawrence bring to the franchise! I just hope that it won’t be too different from the first one; it needs to still be the same series! I can’t wait :’O
I love that he looked into PTSD!! So smart! Shows that he is very torough! It makes so much sense! Im looking forward to the way every character is going to develop troughout the movies, by the end they all have PTSD, no one is spared. Will Katniss grow more introverted? Or show her anger and frustration and trauma on the outside? How will the [spoiler] hijacked Peeta sound, look, feel? How will Johanna change from allready trauamatised, to even more traumatised after the Capitols torture (How will Jena look bald)? Ahh.. you guys.. lets not worry, we have so much to look forward too! And Im excited since I feel like Francis is getting it! My trust in Francis is growing!!
Now this is very promising! I love that Lawrence is delving more deeply into the topic of PTSD and hoping to reveal some of the many layers to characters like Haymitch and Finnick. With all the talk of IMAX and CGI budgets I was getting a little worried that the characters might get short-changed. Fingers crossed!!!
When the change of directors was first announced, I was really upset about Gary leaving. His level of dedication to the series could never be reciprocated by anyone else. But once the initial shock wore off and I really started to think about, I realized Gary did a lot of things that I didn’t like. I particularly didn’t like the way he handled most of the arena sequences and I didn’t like how he developed the character. Once Francis was on board, I had this really optimistic outlook and I was certain that he’d do much better. When I realized that he directed one of my favorite shows, “Touch”, my expectations were raised even higher. These high expectations can ultimately lead to disappointment, but I have a feeling in my gut that that won’t be the case.
I love the different style Francis seems to have. Simply judging from the stills, it seems that his look is more “science-fictiony”, which would work well with Catching Fire. He also seems to be more laid-back and more open-minded vs. Gary’s fight to stay true to HIS vision. BOth have pros and cons, but I believe that Francis’ ability to accept other options can ultimately lead to a much better movie.
I also like how he’s approaching the characters and not only looking at Catching Fire, but the movies ahead. That’s something I thought that Gary failed to do. Francis’ perfect descriptions of Finnick and Haymitch (particularly excited about Haymitch!) provide relief as I eagerly anticipate this second installment.
I feel exactly the same way! I feel like Gary was too stubborn about wanting things exactly his way instead of sticking with the book a little better, so I’m excited to see what Francis does. Still, I’m a bit leery about his film editing because Constantine was a bit of a hot mess. I Am Legend was better though.
Agree with both of you. I think Ross wasn’t able to balance his vision with the meat of the story and certain elements suffered as a result. Lawrence definitely seems more open – he gets and wants to show why Haymitch is so messed up, which is powerful foreshadowing for what Katniss’s life will be like and something I think Harrelson would do a great job with. He also seems to understand the dichotomous aspects of Finnick, so I’m hoping that leads to a character reveal as surprising and effective as the one we got in the books.
I could not agree with you more. Even though the HG was an amazing movie I always felt that this was more d/t the superiority of the source material rather than Ross’s actual directing ability. I’m still miffed about the lack of deleted scenes and director’s commentary.
Francis (it’s kind of confusing with J. Lawrence and Francis Lawrence) seems to have a much more collaborative style and seems very emotionally perceptive.
And I would assume if he’s giving more depth to our lovable secondary characters he must be giving that same treatment to our mains ones. I also think it shows a greater respect for the message of the film (eg the cost of war or trauma) by exploring those depths as thoroughly as possible.
I wonder why there’s virtually no mention of Johanna… which kind of worries me (I might be overreacting though.. its a bit early)
I just hope that she gets the same camera time and attention that Finnick does.
She’s just as awesome and important!
Being the Johanna fan I am I must agree with you, but i think that this focus on Sam as Finnick is mostly because he was the one with the worse fan response, and I guess that’s why they are giving him more space in this early stage of divulgation. But I’m sure (well, honestly, i hope) that in not much time we will get more information/official stills of johanna/wiress/betee and other characters.
your comment makes a lot of sense!
I wonder if they want to keep Johanna as a bit of a dark horse too? We all know how it turns out but do they want to tell the movie going public that? I think it would be interesting if we don’t get too much detail throughout and she sort of gets the ‘mysterious’ tag i.e. Can Katniss trust her? What is her real agenda? I think it would be quite interesting as a movie watcher to see her emerge from the sea with Wiress and Beetee in tow and have no idea whether she was there to kill Katniss or not. She would look pretty menacing/intimidating on a promo poster with her axe and a glint in her eye.
I do think that we may get some interview in the not too distant future (it depends if Jena is doing other projects, she is pretty good at staying away from the media) but I think Johanna will pop up later on when the movie gets closer, along with the other characters. Plus as others have mentioned we don’t want to spoil everything!
Re the lack of Jena, Josh, and others in the media so far — I think we fans need to remember is that the we are NOT the primary targets of CF marketing. I’m sure the vast majority of us are planning on watching the movie in the theaters, even with some concerns about the quality of it. We’re already sold on the movie.
But what about the casual moviegoer, who might think “Ah, they go back into the arena? Sounds like the same old story…might as well just catch it on DVD later.” If LG overplays their hand in terms of spoilers, such a fan might conclude that there’s no point in watching the movie, “they’ve already told me what’s going to happen”.
See, I was that casual movie fan, who also lives in a market where movies are EXPENSIVE! So I really have to be intrigued by a movie to want to pay full price for it. I had not heard of the books at all until shortly before the movie release. I loved how the THG trailers and other information did NOT reveal what happened in the arena, at least pre-movie release. I think that keeping Johanna a mysterious, “friend or foe” character might very well help lure other fans into the theater.
Definitely with you on that one Satsuma, and there are plenty of interesting angles to approach this from. The ‘cover’ is already blown that they are going back into the arena, but I think the why, the how and what happens once they’re inside should very much be kept pretty secret through the rest of the marketing campaign.
It’s still too early to say how they’ll market the film when it comes closer to its release date. I think everything they’re doing right now is to hold the fans’ interests and make sure casual movie goers don’t forget it. A photo of a new character would do better than recurring characters because people would immediately know that something new is up.
Speaking of marketing of the first film, it actually made me not want to watch it or read the books. I wasn’t in the U.S. so I had no idea about other marketing efforts except for the trailers and magazine covers. And, watching the trailers, I thought it was a cliched angsty story about another “strong female character” ™ fighting the bad guys and longing for her dark, tall, handsome lover. I thought it’d be a very predictable love story with a sci-fi/adventure twist and I am not interested in another “franchise” based on bestselling novels and its pervasive marketing. I also had no idea they were teenagers. Otherwise, my resistance to the film would’ve been even stronger. It was only after hearing my cousin’s strong endorsement that I reluctantly picked up the books. Needless to say, I was very surprised to find out what the story really was.
“And, watching the trailers, I thought it was a cliched angsty story about another “strong female character” ™ fighting the bad guys and longing for her dark, tall, handsome lover”
That’s interesting; I knew about THG before, from some online friends whose taste I trust, and I knew it was a dystopian story about kids having to fight to death, that the main character was a girl called Katniss that many people considered a great female character, and that there was a boy called Peeta who also had to fight in the Arena. I planned to pick up a book once I had time, but I wasn’t even sure if it was one book or a book series.
But it was the trailer that made me want to watch the movie ASAP. My impression was completely different. I didn’t get any indication if there was going to be any romance, and I didn’t even register Gale. All I saw was the dystopia, Jennifer Lawrence (who I knew only from X-Men: First Class but, unlike some other people, I loved her in that movie) looking very different than she did as Raven, and what I found the most memorable, Katniss VOLUNTEERING FOR HER LITTLE SISTER. A heroine fighting for and sacrificing herself for her younger sister is not common in fiction, except for one major precedent, very dear to my heart. So that really made me want to watch the movie.
I agree that they don’t want to give everything away, but I wonder why they so far have put so much emphasis on Gale, and so little on Peeta. I have always thought that people were more in favor of Peeta than Gale, so wouldn’t that be a good marketing strategy to show that he is also in the movie? Or maybe, I am wrong, and people really do love Gale more, or maybe the people involved in the movie just love Liam. I just need to remind myself that it’s only January. But it would really ease my mind, if Nina or Francis would say how the dynamic between Katniss and Peeta is in this film, because when they say nothing at all about it, my mind just jumps to the conclusion that Jen and Josh must have done a horrible job.
Dude, I hope you brought your body armor.
I agree. I realize we have only gotten a few articles, but I would like to heat about some other characters besides finicky. That’s all we’ve heard about some far! Glad we got some awesome haymitch insight though.
i really like that he reinforces basically everything i thought the finnick casting process had to be, what they were looking for and how they found it in sam claflin. i’m glad they were thinking ahead, looking for the full package instead of just someone pretty who could represent finnick now. you know, out of everybody who’s working on piecing together this thing, i’ve always had the most faith in the casting people. they didn’t let me down in THG and i trust them to do the same for the rest of the films. sam’s going to be great, i’m sure.
i’m also very happy to hear he’s been delving into PTSD with woody harrelson– i know gary ross also did a little of that, but there wasn’t really a moment in THG to really introduce that in the storyline. CF is where that happens, where we really see where haymitch and his drinking and his attitude actually come from, and i’m glad they’re putting a focus on that. i hope this means we’ll get to at least hear his backstory during the 2nd quell.
and one thing i really like is the departure lawrence is possibly going to take from gary ross’s style. while i like a certain level of continuity in a series, and i know some people aren’t fond of the idea of directors changing in the middle of a series, i think coming into it from a fresh PoV is more often than not a good thing. i liked what gary ross did with the first movie– it’s true that he very much stuck to his vision of what the adaptation had to be like, but i liked that. on the other hand, lawrence giving things his own spin, i think that can make for quite an advantage, given that CF is much more involved with interpersonal relationships than THG was. so we’ll see how that goes.
Spot on
I think THG worked too because Ross’ vision was also for it to be Katniss’ vision, what she sees and how she deals with it (apart from the extra scenes that did delve into the world). In CF we start to learn (because Katniss starts to learn) that things are much bigger than herself, and as you pointed out all the different interpersonal relationships come into play. I can’t wait, giving Woody plenty to do as Haymitch will be exciting as I’m sure all of the other characters will be!
Plus I think the great thing too is that Francis recognises that in the books that the stakes are higher, so I am excited that he has also interpreted this in a physical sense – the costumes are beefed up, the CGI is going to be huge and the set pieces and locations have been dead on too from what we’ve seen.
You could even argue that GR’s vision worked for THG because his personal quirks actually are Katniss-like! It seemed that GR subscribes to the “if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself” philosophy, and while a whole lot of people helped him out, he seemed to have a tad of the control freak mentality that he had to personally supervise and approve EVERYTHING. (One reason he couldn’t adapt to the abbreviated post-THG filming schedule.) Also, per the THG DVD commentary, he really seemed to thrive off the idea of getting the cast and crew out in the middle of the woods, far away from civilization. Also very Katniss of him.
Now, I’m sure GR had a vision of how to tackle the grittier issues in CF, give the viewers a broader look at Panem both geographically and politically, develop the love triangle, etc. I think it’s unfair to him to assume that he’d have taken the exact same approach to CF as he did to THG in terms of handling the issues that crop up in CF. It seems that sometimes, F-Law love in the fandom turns quickly into Gary-bashing, and I really don’t like that.
Heh, I had never thought of GR as having Katniss-like qualities, that’s interesting!
I suppose the whole GR v FL debate fits into the category where we mostly hear from the loudest voices, rather than the silent majority, which is disappointing.
I like how he mentioned on how Sam was sexy! LOL! Sorry people I needed to say that. Also I can really tell that Haymitch will be how I pictured him while reading the books in this movie. Drunk.
Sorry again. ………..;……………… 
needed to say that on a real website.
I’m so happy they are trying to give Haymitch more depth, in the first movie it seemed a bit like the caracter was only there for comic relief. Also the relationship between Katniss and Haymitch is one of the most important relationships in the series and somehow they didn’t quite manage to convey it properly in the first film, so I hope to see it develop much more in CF.
I Know what you mean. I love when Katniss goes over to Haymitch to talk about the Quarter Quell
Let me add to my other comment. Why isn’t he talking about Johanna, Beetee, Wiress, and Mags. They are important too. What about Plutrach. And one more thing. What about Katniss hanging the Senca Crane dummy and Peeta painting Rue on the training center floor. What about the Morphlings. Cray. Seeder and Chaff. Sorry for spoliers but are those things going to happen. (Sorry for going on) WHERE’S THE MOCKINGJAY PIN?!?!??!?!??!?!??!?!??!?!
Why isn’t Francis Lawrence talking about every single character and scene in the film? Uh, because (1) He doesn’t want to spoil the movie that much and (2) If he did that, the interview would have taken a whole day, maybe more, which neither him or MTV have to spare?
Personally, I don’t want advance notice of everything that will happen (or not happen) in the CF movie, I’d rather leave a lot of it for the movie itself!
Sorry for over reacting I just want the movie to come out now!
Let me just say everyone that I am very sorry about my comment. I was just overreacting and just wishing it was November and not January. I’ m really sorry.
If I caused any spoliers sorry again. I really should keep my opinions to my self. 
I swear I am not trying to to start any kinds of fights. Please no hate.
I agree with Hannah. I wish he would talk about some other people. And yeah where is the Mockingjay pin?
Ok. I agree with Hannah you just dont talk about one. You can talk about multiple people and not give a way. So Satsuma and all you others please stop hating
Katie I see people are hating.
This makes me even more excited after reading this. Everything that I have read and seen so far is giving me high expectations and just makes me think that Catching Fire is going to be better than the Hunger Games, which I shouldn’t judge before I see it but so far I think Catching Fire is going to be amazing.
I think Francis will do an amazing job. So excited!
It seems to me that Gary Ross’s vision was, in a sense, minimalist; he focused on developing Katniss as a heroine, the Capitol as a place that, on the surface, seems rather elegant and highbrow, only hinting at the underlying depravity; and the use of the Games by the Capitol as part of a strategy to subjugate the Districts through brute force (but NOT the socio-economic disparities that either are part of, or help facilitate, the subjugation). THG also seemed much more teenager-focused than CF. The comments from Gary and the teen actors from the DVD extras about the “summer camp” atmosphere of the set, for example.
I think the advantages of these choices is that, at least to me, this made the film very accessible and believable as something that COULD happen in our own future, as opposed to something that’s out of a sci-fi movie set in a “galaxy far, far away”. The costume design, for example; while the Capitol citizens were dressed very garishly (no pun intended), the tribute costumes and other clothes worn by the major characters didn’t seem that different from what people wear in RL today. (I know Gary didn’t design the costumes himself, but the DVD did mention that he wanted a rather subdued look).
CF, so far, does seem more sci-fi and futuristic. And at least where Haymitch is concerned, Lawrence seems to be thinking more deeply about character development and relationships. I wonder, did he consider the repercussions for Mockingjay even before he knew he would still be the director for those films? Hopefully he did.
One fear I do have about the MJ movies is that the screenwriter, Danny Strong, has a background mostly in movies about real-life politics, in which all he really had to do regarding character development, was make the movie character similar enough to the real person so that people found it plausible that “yes, this is how I pictured John McCain”, etc. Will he be able to bring completely fictional characters to life? I know that Lawrence, unlike Ross, is not a scriptwriter himself. But hopefully, his attention to character development serves the MJ movies well.
It could turn out to be a very good thing that Lawrence isn’t a screenwriter. The more involved you are in your work, the harder a time you have stepping outside of it and seeing the potential flaws – or listening to those who do.
I have no idea what to expect, really, but I like everything I’ve heard from Lawrence so far.
Nice to hear that Lawrence is thinking beyond CF. It gives me more confidence that we might see better character development and, hopefully, a darker vision that reflects the brutality and oppressiveness of the war.
One thing that disappointed me in Ross’s take is that the games as well as the political situation never seemed dire or cruel and I never got the sense that Katniss and others suffered psychologically, save Cato and his final monologue. Haymitch was simply grouchy. Katniss was defiant and capable throughout and was only slight confused. (Thus, we have no idea why she even bothered with Peeta. She didn’t need to play that game in order to win the games. Maybe she’s just heroic like that.) She’s our heroine and, somehow, we cheered her on to kill other (baddie) kids! That’s just not right.
Katniss is a teenager caught up in a very bad situation and used by different sides to fight their wars. She isn’t a conventional heroine and certainly isn’t a born rebel. I hope we can see that Katniss. I hope we don’t get a Hollywood “role model” that, through her heroic deeds and triumph, might ended up glorifying war. After all, THG is an (anti-)war story with beautifully written characters, not an adventure. And I hope we can see a Gale who’s angry at the Capital instead of frustrated because he can’t get his girl; a Peeta who’s kind, smart, with his own agenda, and capable of moving a crowd instead of a lovesick puppy; a Finnick who’s complex and conflicted enough that the audience will know him as a tragic figure instead of just another good-looking guy….
You just exactly worded my thoughts and feelings about THG. Thank you.
I have seen the film first.I fall in love with the story and it made me read the books.
But after I finished the books I felt the film could have been deeper in some ways. No offense. I still love the film but it didn’t interpreted the caracters exactly or deeply. Just like you said.
“Haymitch was simply grouchy. Katniss was defiant and capable throughout and was only slight confused. (Thus, we have no idea why she even bothered with Peeta. She didn’t need to play that game in order to win the games. Maybe she’s just heroic like that.) ”
“After all, THG is an (anti-)war story with beautifully written characters, not an adventure. And I hope we can see a Gale who’s angry at the Capital instead of frustrated because he can’t get his girl; a Peeta who’s kind, smart, with his own agenda, and capable of moving a crowd instead of a lovesick puppy; a Finnick who’s complex and conflicted enough that the audience will know him as a tragic figure instead of just another good-looking guy….”
And again thank you to wright this down. I couldn’t word my thoughts since english is not my mother language.
Thank you for the kind words. Your writing is very clear and I don’t think the language will be an issue for you. I am not a native speaker, either. Just worked and studied in English-speaking settings for years.
Yeah it kind of bothered me how lame they made Peeta. I loved Peeta in the books. He was charasmatic, flirty, kind, and very much a leader type with a good head on his shoulders. Yes, he can be the damsel in destress bc he isn’t a warrior, but he isn’t a wimp. It always bothers me when they make fun of Peeta on comedy shows bc of the way he was pretrayed.
Unlike with Katniss and Gale, there really isn’t a known “formula” to mold the character of Peeta, which makes it difficult to bring him to the big screen. And Josh isn’t a typical Hollywood leading man, especially when surrounded by a grown-up cast. I think they only managed to capture part of him (the kindness and ambiguity of his intention) but didn’t really bring out the quick wit, perceptiveness, and soft strength. Josh made him work through his youthful innocence and earnest. But these same quality can also make movie!Peeta appear “weak.” That said, I read the books before watching the movie. So there’s no way for me to judge whether or not this Peeta is a wimp in the eyes of non-readers.
**Not saying that the portrait of movie Katniss and Gale followed Hollywood formula. It’s just easier for the audience to connect them with known types and recognize, correctly or incorrectly, what they are. This, of course, is also a worry. Studio executives are not the creative types. They tend to want the safe, proven formula and might push the creative team or the marketing team to turn Katniss and Gale into simplified versions of themselves.
(continue on my mini essay)
I am actually more worried about Gale. He is the skilled hunter, rebel warrior, and ansty lover that fits the Hollywood hero profile. Liam also has the looks of a more traditional lead and Hollywood heartthrob. It will be hard to resist not making him so.
The reason why Gale is an interesting character is that he appears to be that on the first glance, but is revealed to be an antihero as the story progresses. Making Gale a genuine hero wouldn’t make sense with what’s coming in Mockingjay. Like Satsuma pointed out in her recent essay about Katniss, Katniss changes throughout the story but Gale remains the same, we just get to see his personality and his ideas in a different light. And this is why he’s a great foil for Katniss in Mockingjay, and why the comparison between them stresses just how she has grown as a person and why she is the heroine of the story.
Therefore I don’t see any reason to worry about the movies turning Gale into the hero – because that would undermine the entire story, and the Mockingjay movies would make no sense, or they would have to be rewritten to the point of completely changing Suzanne Collins’ story and its messages. And I think we can be sure they are not doing that.
Collins subverted so many stereotypes in THG. With Gale, I think the trick really is to make people think at first that he’s going to be the hero, and then gradually subvert those expectations; just like it’s a neat trick with Finnick to present him as a vain philandering sex bomb and then reveal that he’s really someone completely different.
So agree with Lillian on the hopes for real character development in CF. You really hit the nail on the head with your comments! I really enjoyed THG bit always noted that not one character was developed in any form.
Well expressed, Satsuma and Lillian!
As time goes on, I’m sure that we will hear more about other characters. Many of the first interviews were conducted around the same time. Bits and pieces are released over time, though, so we get a lot on the same topics, just spread out. The Haymitch info is new and most welcome, though! As the other actors film or promote other projects too, we’ll get more and more on their experiences with CF. I agree that I’m interested in hearing reports of Jena and Johanna. She was a character that I didn’t pay much attention to my first read through, but on subsequent readings, I’ve really grown to appreciate her layers and tragedy.
This is just a test post, as my last two attempts at replying to this topic have failed.
I’m starting to think that some die-hard Peeta fans are actually worried that the MJ movies will change the ending so that Katniss winds up with Gale instead, or at least, NOT with Peeta. I personally find this to be as plausible, as Danny Strong having changed the ending of Game Change so that McCain and Palin won instead of Obama and Biden. Or the Harry Potter movies changing the ending so that Harry and Hermione become a couple, or the Twilight movies having Bella change into a werewolf, not a vampire.
But if people want to act like Katniss, and let the worst-case scenario keep them from enjoying the fandom (or at least the movie aspect of the fandom), I guess there’s nothing I can do to stop them.
Satsuma-not sure if Peeta fans are necessarily afraid of an alteration in the story and who Katniss chooses in the end–I think that it is more of a worry that The character(peeta) may again not be developed( his character in THG was so underdeveloped as was others). Believe that fans are worried that if Peeta and Katniss do not get the scenes they need to build a bond, then it makes a very big problem for the Mockingjay movies.
There has to be a connection made in CF so when Peeta is captured and then not himself in the next two movies-one can understand why Katniss acts and feels the way she does.
Agreed. When characters are underdeveloped or changed too much, motivations and actions stop making sense. And when they don’t make sense, the story suffers.
I don’t think it’s a team Peeta vs. team Gale thing and feel very uneasy that, whenever someone mentions the underdevelopment of characters (Peeta amongst them) or the peculiar lack of mention of Josh/Peeta in interviews, it gets interpreted as a team war. Making this as a team war trivializes legitimate concern from book fans, not just Peeta fans. Peeta is a main character. One can also easily argue that he’s one of the leads. So it’s only natural for book fans to wonder why he seems so overlooked by the team involved in bringing the book to the big screen and be unsatisfied with Peeta’s treatment in the movie.
I’m not trying to imply that the only people who are concerned about Peeta’s character development are “Team Peeta” fans drooling over Josh’s jaw. I just think that the DEGREE of angsting I’ve seen so far is much too premature. Remember, Peeta and Katniss are going to spend time together during the Victory Tour, Tribute Training, and Arena scenes.
It also seems, from comments about streamlining the first third of the book, that the Arena scenes are going to take up a much greater percentage of the movie (I estimate at least half the total running time) than they did in the book (about one third of the total page count).
It may surprise people here to know that Peeta is actually MY favorite character. I also agree that his character development in THG could have been handled a bit better. However, the “guilty until proven innocent” attitude I’m seeing from a lot of people here, just strikes me as, again, way too premature. If we get to late spring or summer without any significant word on Peeta, then I might change my tune. I guess time will tell.
@Satsuma – your latter doesn’t follow your former. Shockingly, I am capable of nurturing multiple conspiracy theories about the movies while continuing to enjoy the fandom – including the very insightful and interesting comments by you, Ivana, and whomever else considers me a crackpot.
(Not kidding about the comments – very well written.)