Back to Panem? Some of the Hunger Games stars have spoken about possibility reprising their roles if the franchise were to continue.
Starring Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson, among others, the four-film franchise was based on the series of books of the same name by Suzanne Collins. The Winter’s Bone actress starred as Katniss Everdeen, a teen who volunteered to risk her life in a televised event titled The Hunger Games. A male and female champion from each of the 12 districts in Panem were put into an arena and fought until one person came out victorious. When the rebellious Katniss refused to kill her newfound love interest Peeta Mellark (Josh) to win the competition, she inadvertently starts a revolution.
Just as the characters of Katniss and Peeta were close within the film, actors Jennifer, Josh and Liam (who played Gale Hawthorne) formed a friendship in real life.
“The truth is, it was literally what everyone saw in all of our interviews together,” the Bridge to Terabthia star told Us Weekly in September 2020 of the cast. “It was all of us being ridiculous children together, horsing around. I don’t know how we got any work done ever. I’m surprised the movies are good.”
The first film, The Hunger Games, premiered in 2012 with the last movie, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, hit theaters in 2015.
“It feels almost like a different lifetime. It really does,” Josh also told Us Weekly. “It feels like that was my college, making those movies. I was 18, it was four years. … It’s very strange that we’re closing in on 10 years. It’s mind-blowing.”
Years after the original Hunger Games books were released, author Suzanne wrote a prequel novel titled The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which made its debut in May 2020. A movie to accompany the book has since been announced. This time around, the action-packed movie will follow the story of a teenage Coriolanus Snow — who eventually will become the tyrannical president of Panem.
With a new Hunger Games movie in the works, fans are eager to see if any original stars would reprise their roles. Although it’s a different story, Josh, for one, has answered questions about the possibility of returning. He told Us Weekly in September 2020 that he hasn’t “gotten a call” to step back into Peeta’s shoes just yet. However, the actor “would love to play Peeta again,” noting that he “had great chemistry from the get-go” with his costars — especially Jennifer.
Scroll through our gallery to read the Hunger Games cast’s quotes about possibly reprising their roles.
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