Jennifer Lawrence

Josh Hutcherson thinks he’s in Dallas, though all he’s seen is an airport, a hotel and a mall. It’s 16 days before the opening of “The Hunger Games,” and though the 19-year-old actor has been performing since he was 9 — in films as diverse as “American Splendor,” “Journey to the Center of the Earth” and “The Kids are All Right” — the reaction to co-starring in the adaptation of the Suzanne Collins novel is unlike anything he’s ever experienced. It’s also the first cross-country mall tour the young actor has jumped aboard, hence the reason for his location confusion. In the last week, the actor has been in giant shopping centers in Chicago, Minneapolis, Seattle and Dallas, signing posters and books for throngs of screaming fans who have shown up to get a glimpse of the young man playing […]

You can find our team coverage of “The Hunger Games’” world premiere over at 24 Frames  but, in short, the scene was something that could have been staged in the Capitol, the sleek, over-the-top city of sensory overload from the books. “A little bit like this,” producer Nina Jacobson said as she took in the scene. The crowd was dotted with fans taking fashion tips from the “Hunger Games” world —  some wore flamboyant Easter-egg colors with long black gloves and hairpieces of purple feather or bright blue tulle; others went for the heroine’s battle-ready ensemble of French braid, orange-lined black jacket and archer’s bow. The most popular symbol? Mockingjay pins (or necklaces or T-shirt logos or hair accessories) , of course, which were worn by fans, staffers and even some members of the press. The stars themselves didn’t seem to get […]

Fans of “The Hunger Games” won’t have to wait long to see Katniss Everdeen take aim on the big screen. Advance tickets for opening night go on sale Wednesday, a full month ahead of the Lionsgate film’s March 23 release, and will be available through MovieTickets.com and Fandango.com. In the meantime, aficionados of Suzanne Collins’ bestselling young-adult novels can meet the film’s stars during a national mall tour beginning March 3, and they can get a glimpse of their favorite “Hunger Games” characters in new pictures from the film and a new IMAX poster (click through the gallery above). The new photos, released on the film’s web site, provide a closer look at Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence), Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) and Gale Hawthorne (Liam Hemsworth), as well as the less-publicized supporting characters, including Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket, […]

Fans of “The Hunger Games” are getting a closer look at the characters brought to life in the film’s second trailer, which will air during the Super Bowl this Sunday. “The Hunger Games,” based on the bestselling children’s book series by Suzanne Collins, is set in a post-apocalyptic nation called Panem. Two children from each of the nation’s 12 districts are plucked to compete in a cruel, televised fight to the death — as punishment for rebellion 75 years prior, and for the amusement of the wealthy Capitol residents. Jennifer Lawrence plays the film’s heroine, Katniss Everdeen, a teenager who volunteers to compete in her sister’s place. The film will be released in IMAX theaters March 23, Lionsgate announced Thursday. The new trailer reveals more of the reaping (the ceremony in which tributes are selected), a teary embrace between Katniss […]

For a guy knee-deep in post-production on one of 2012’s most highly anticipated films, Gary Ross exudes an unnatural calm. It’s mid-December and despite the 1,200 visual effects shots that need to be completed in the next month, not only is the hyper-articulate director of “The Hunger Games” willing to show a journalist around his sprawling edit bay in Hollywood, but he’d also probably show off the whole unfinished movie if only the studio would allow. Clues to Ross’ jovial-yet-serene disposition lay all around. His iPhone boasts a screen-saver picture from the set of the Lionsgate film — leading lady Jennifer Lawrence is wiping her nose on Ross’ sleeve while the two are standing in the middle of a North Carolina forest. Walk down the hall to editor Stephen Mirrione’s office and he quips how Lawrence “makes everyone’s life a […]

“The Hunger Games” trailer is out, and it promises action and heartache, set in a world that’s both gritty and surreal. The film’s heroine, Katniss Everdeen, portrayed by “X-Men: First Class” and “Winter’s Bone” actress Jennifer Lawrence, is a  teenager who volunteers to take her younger sister’s place in a cruel competition of children forced to fight to the death for the amusement of the wealthy and the political gain of the powerful. The previously released movie stills for “The Hunger Games,” which hits theaters March 23, drew some ire from fans, who complained the cast was too old and too pretty to play the starving children of the post-apocalyptic world envisioned by Suzanne Collins, the author of the bestselling novels on which the film is based. But fans of the novels can exhale; Josh Hutcherson, who plays Peeta Mellark in […]

“The Hunger Games” fans can get a glimpse of Katniss, Rue, Peeta, Gale and other characters from the upcoming film in a series of character-based movie posters, released Friday. The movie, based on the bestselling novels by author Suzanne Collins, opens in theaters on March 14. “The Hunger Games” series follows a cruel competition among children forced to fight to the death for the entertainment of television viewers and for the political gain of the masters of Panem, a post-apocalyptic nation in Earth’s future. Lionsgate aired a clip of the movie at the MTV Video Music Awards and released several images from the film to mixed reaction from fans anxious to see their beloved characters portrayed accurately on the big screen. Oscar-nominated “Winter’s Bone” actress Jennifer Lawrence plays the story’s heroine Katniss Everdeen, a girl who volunteers to enter the […]

Fans of the bestselling book series will get their first glimpse of “The Hunger Games” film on Sunday during MTV’s Video Music Awards. MTV announced it will air a clip from the movie, which stars Oscar-nominated actress Jennifer Lawrence, of “X-Men: First Class” and “Winter’s Bone” fame, and is scheduled for release March 23, 2012. MTV usually reserves this kind of sneak peek for its annual Movie Awards — that was where, in June, for instance, stars were on hand and preview clips were shown for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2″ and “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1.” “The Hunger Games” series follows the grim competition between children and young adults who are forced to fight to the death for entertainment of television viewers and their cruel government masters in a post-apocalyptic nation called Panem. “The Hunger Games” […]

“The Hunger Games” doesn’t make the leap to the big screen until March, but a new “motion poster” for the film is helping stoke fan excitement for the project, which will star Oscar-nominated actress Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen.  Click on the poster for a larger, embeddable version. – Jevon Phillips RECENT AND RELATED ‘Hunger Games’ photo: Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Collins: Lawrence is ‘beautiful, unforgiving and brave’ ‘Hunger Games’: How Gary Ross got director’s job Chloe Moretz: ‘I’d die to play Katniss’ Suzanne Collins ‘thrilled’ to have ‘Seabiscuit’ director Ron Howard’s quest for King’s ‘The Dark Tower’ Stephen King: Rowling has talent, Meyer can’t write Gaiman says ‘Graveyard Book’ film dead — for now

The producers of “The Hunger Games” created a bit of a stir among the book’s fans when “Winter’s Bone” actress Jennifer Lawrence was cast as Katniss Everdeen, the 16-year-old protagonist in the intense young-adult novel by Suzanne Collins.  The cover of an upcoming “Entertainment Weekly” gives us the first look of the blond-turned-brunet actress in the role. [FOR THE RECORD:  Katniss' age was misstated in an earlier version of this post.] In the EW issue, Lawrence also recounts a talk that she had with director Gary Ross about the Oscar season, relating it to experiences that her District 12 hunter character went through in the book: “He was asking me what the experience was like,” she recalls, “and I just kind of opened up and said, ‘I feel like a rag doll. I have hair and makeup people coming to […]