First Look at Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss in The Hunger Games

Entertainment Weekly’s cover this week sports the first peek at Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in the highly anticipated film adaptation of The Hunger Games being filmed here in lovely Western North Carolina, where it’s still rainy and 50 degrees today. How highly anticipated is this film?  The movie won’t be released until next spring, and filming doesn’t even start until next week, but the star is already featured on magazine covers, with her mockingay pin in place and her bow at the ready. Rather than an attempt to stir up hype–there’s already quite a bit of that, and the big press push will be closer to release time–this cover and the accompanying article appear geared toward readers who have been skeptical of Lawrence’s casting, despite the endorsement of author Suzanne Collins. In this piece of the interview in EW, Lawrence shares her experience of getting the starlet treatment, an expereince much like Katniss undergoes in the Remake Center. The reverse process seems to have been followed by her HG film handlers, who have dyed her hair, made her tan (though it looks much more beach than mountain-girl-in-the-woods tan), and pretty much taken her to “Beauty Base Zero.”  This cover shot, though, looks retouched, so it’s unclear if this is really the Katniss we’ll see on screen. We should know something more next week when filming starts. I hope to hear great details from my friendly extras on the set as they get started bringing this incredible story to the screen. If you haven’t yet, take a look back through our copious Hunger Games posts and join us in our lively conversation of the book and its most talked-about-yet-to-be-made movie!