The Hunger Games, Mockingjay, Part One courtesy Lionsgate
Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) goes to war in the final trailer for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 from Lionsgate.
Katniss arrives in District 13 after she literally shatters the games forever. Under the leadership of President Coin (Julianne Moore) and the advice of her friends, Katniss spreads her wings as she fights to save Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and a nation inspired by her courage.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire opens this week. Jennifer Lawrence reprises her role as Katniss Everdeen, who is forced to compete in deadly new games of former champions (including Josh Hutcherson back at Peeta.)
Before global success of The Hunger Games, before winning an Oscar for Best Actress for her role in Silver Linings Playbook, Lawrence and her leading men (Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth) came to Seattle on The Hunger Games Tour. I remember young fans erupting into a frenzy like tributes arriving in the Capitol.
I wanted to share part of that interview again. Most of the young fans were on Team Gale or Team Peeta. I asked Lawrence about the relationship between Katniss and Cinna, the stylist who becomes her mentor. While filming X-Men: First Class Lawrence (who played Raven/Mystique) became friends with co-star Zoe Kravitz (who played Angel) and developed a friendship with her dad, rock star Lenny Kravitz. She explained that helped their on-screen rapport:
Kravitz returns as Cinna to prepare Katniss and Peeta for the Hunger Games Quarter Quell as the new District 12 champions must fight for their lives again against former winners.
Kate Bishop aka Hawkeye, art by Jim Cheung, image courtesy Marvel.com
Katniss Everdeen is the amazing heroine of the epic and emotional The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins and the smash hit movie. If you like Katniss I think you will enjoy the adventures of Marvel’s Kate Bishop of the Young Avengers. Katniss and Kate’s backgrounds are very different but they young heroines share a lot of similarities besides their archery skills.
Kate is tough, independent, blunt and an excellent archer. Kate was born rich but dedicated herself to charity like her late mother. The Young Avengers were an all boys team until a rescue attempt lead them to meet the level-headed and tough under pressure rich girl. Donning parts of the costumes once worn by Hawkeye and Mockingbird, Kate became part of the team of found a secret place for the team to train.
Avengers The Children's Crusade #8 cover courtesy Marvel
In Young Avengers Special Kate confides a dark painful secret to reporter Jessica Jones. We learn Kate was brutally attacked in what appears to be Central Park. Kate was traumatized and inspired undergo intense martial arts and weapons training like fencing, archery, and swordsmanship.
I don’t want to give too much away but Kate’s best friend becomes Cassie Lang, the daughter of Ant-Man who goes by the code name Stature. Kate’s testy and sexy relationship with Eli Walker aka Patriot is part of the ongoing appeal of the series. The two teens are stubborn, independent and it’s a joy to watch their “will they or won’t they” relationship evolve.
Kate wasn’t born with super powers but holds her own as the team confronts villains, gets caught up in Marvel’s biggest epics. She takes on the code name Hawkeye, stands up to Captain America when he orders the team to shut down and eventually meets the real Hawkeye (Clint Barton, played by Jeremy Renner in Marvel’s The Avengers.)
Allan Heinberg (a writer on Sex & the City, Grey’s Anatomy, Gilmore Girls, Party of Five, The O.C.) and artist Jim Cheung created Kate and the Young Avengers. I’m a huge fan of the Young Avengers. The Children’s Crusade is one of the most beautifully drawn and written stories in modern Marvel history. Here’s the Marvel.com link to learn more about Kate’s team, The Young Avengers.
Here are Amazon links to the big Young Avengers story collections. Hope you enjoy!
The Cast of X-Men: First Class courtesy Marvel.com
Two big studios. Two big franchises. One hot star. There appears to be a compromise that keeps fans of the X-Men and The Hunger Games happy!
The X-Men First Class sequel will start shooting in January. That means Lionsgate can shoot Catching Fire in August/September without a conflict for Jennifer Lawrence according to The Hollywood Reporter Heat Vision. The in-demand actress plays Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games sequel, Catching Fire, and Raven/Mystique in X-Men: First Class.
The next step for Catching Fire is lining up a director. The Hunger Games director and co-writer Gary Ross does not have a deal for the sequel.
