“It Was Crazy” - Jennifer Lawrence on Reuniting With Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, and ‘Hunger Games’ Family
Credits: Imago
Jennifer Lawrence in Hunger Games
The odds of a reunion this good were ever in Jennifer Lawrence’s favor. The Hunger Games fans were thrilled to learn that Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Woody Harrelson would return for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Lawrence has now opened up about the reunion, revealing that the familiar faces and reunited crew made the experience feel just like the original trilogy.
The original films were famous for laughter between horrific scenes and tearjerking deaths, and with the old gang back together, Sunrise on the Reaping might have a few more tricks up its sleeve than just another bloodbath.
Jennifer Lawrence on reuniting with the Hunger Games team
The odds of Jennifer Lawrence getting emotional over a Hunger Games reunion were apparently much higher than anyone expected! Speaking on Call Her Daddy, the actress revealed that returning as Katniss Everdeen for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping meant reuniting with Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson, and the crew who had helped bring Panem to life.
“It was so crazy,” Lawrence recalled.
She explained that familiar camera operators and the same assistant director made the experience feel like coming home. Director Francis Lawrence is also back for his fifth franchise film, alongside longtime producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson, making this reunion a behind-the-scenes homecoming as much as an on-screen one.
THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE, from left: Josh Hutcherson, Jennifer Lawrence, 2013. ph: Murray Close Lionsgate courtesy Everett Collection Lions Gate Courtesy Everett Collection !ACHTUNG AUFNAHMEDATUM GESCHÄTZT! PUBLICATIONXNOTxINxCANxCHNxFRAxITAxJPNxNORxPOLxRUSxESPxUKxUSA Copyright: xLionsxGate CourtesyxEverettxCollectionx MCDHUGA EC062
The emotional highlight, however, was Lawrence and Hutcherson barely wanting to leave each other’s side. On Call Her Daddy, the actress revealed that the pair would not even walk to the bathroom without their arms around each other, calling the experience “so beautiful.” If the original trilogy forged friendships between arena nightmares, this reunion sounds like its own kind of victory tour.
Between launching a business and returning to Panem, Jennifer Lawrence has had plenty of new adventures, but seeing the same Hunger Games crew and a particularly favorite assistant director clearly felt like coming home.
Jennifer Lawrence’s go-to Assistant Director
Every leading actor has a trusted person behind the camera, and Jennifer Lawrence seems to have found hers in first assistant director Christopher Surgent. The pair have worked together across four films, including The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, Mockingjay – Part 2, Red Sparrow, and Causeway, building a professional bond that has lasted well beyond Panem.
THE HUNGER GAMES, Jennifer Lawrence, 2012. ph: Murray Close Lionsgate Courtesy Everett Collection Lions Gate Courtesy Everett Collection !ACHTUNG AUFNAHMEDATUM GESCHÄTZT! PUBLICATIONXNOTxINxCANxCHNxFRAxITAxJPNxNORxPOLxRUSxESPxUKxUSA Copyright: xLionsxGate CourtesyxEverettxCollectionx MCDHUGA EC024
Their partnership has even extended into producing, with Christopher Surgent serving as an executive producer on Causeway, where Jennifer Lawrence also took on production duties. That history helps explain why seeing the same assistant director again meant so much to Lawrence during the Sunrise on the Reaping reunion.
Are you ready to watch the original Hunger Games cast in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping? Let us know in the comments!
Edited By: Adiba Nizami
