Jennifer Lawrence Is Not A Frontrunner For The Role
Less than 24 hours after Hailee Steinfeld, Abigail Breslin and Jennifer Lawrence emerged as contenders for the highly touted role of Katniss Everdeen in the gestating “Hunger Games,” some more, pretty obvious names emerged. Talent that would be on any director or casting agent’s wishlist for a role that needs a young female lead.
EW reports that Chloe Moretz, Lyndsy Fonseca, Emma Roberts, Saoirse Ronan, Kaya Scodelario, Emily Browning and Shailene Woodley are all among the staggering 30 actresses who have met or read for the role. That’s right, they are casting a huge, wide net for this part and it looks like names big and small are being considered for a role that is going to anchor the franchise with the age range spanning 14- to 24-year-olds (which is sure to rile up die hard fans of the book). And EW adds that despite some reports, Lawrence is not a front-runner for the part.
So who are these people? Moretz is probably the most well known having appeared last year in “Kick-Ass” and “Let Me In” and seems like an obvious fit for the part of the poor 16-year-old girl from District 12 who volunteers to compete in the nationally televised gladiatorial fight-to-the-death that the plot revolves around. Fonesca is best known for her role on “How I Met Your Mother” and this would be a big leap into feature films for her. Roberts has been cutting her teeth on the indie circuit starring in “It’s Kind of a Funny Story” last year and hitting Sundance a couple of months ago in the generally well-received “Homework“; she’s also in “Scream 4” out this spring. Ronan will be proving her ass-kicking skills in the upcoming “Hanna” and her schedule might be an issue if she signs on to “The Hobbit,” which hasn’t happened yet, but everyone thinks will. Browning, too, will be flexing some muscles in Zack Snyder‘s upcoming “Sucker Punch.” Scodelario had a part in “Clash of the Titans” and is probably best known for her turn on the U.K. teen smut series “Skins,” while Woodley stars in the atrocious “The Secret Life of the American Teenager.”
A big, broad mix of names that will definitely spur more chatter from the fans who have already been very vocal about their thoughts on the film. Director Gary Ross has some big decisions to make (he can consult our casting choices if he wants) and he needs to settle them soon; the film is coming out a year from now on March 23, 2012.
