So I go away for eight days and what I come back to is the year's biggest franchise film possibly losing one of its most important components. Of course I'm talking about The Hunger Games, and there have been some significant moves taking place in the last couple of days. It's actually more of mixed bag of good news and bad news, so let's just start with the good.
Jennifer Lawrence now has two major franchises under her belt, with The Hunger Games taking aim at nearly $300M in just over two weeks. But she also has X-men: First Class, which last year reinvigorated the sagging mutant franchise to the point where 20th Century Fox greenlit a sequel with Matthew Vaughn returning to direct. So here's the dilemma: Fox wanted to begin filming on the X-men sequel this fall, which would have crashed into Lawrence's schedule to shoot Catching Fire, the second film in The Hunger Games trilogy. Let's face it, Lawrence probably wouldn't choose a side role as Mystique in X-men: First Class over the global juggernaut that is The Hunger Games, but fortunately she won't have to make that decision. THR says that Lionsgate and Fox have ironed out a deal that will push X-men back to next January, meaning Lawrence will be tackling two huge films in a row. Not bad for an actress none of us had heard of three years ago.
Before Catching Fire can get rolling, they may need to find a new director. Over the last few days, reports began to trickle out that Gary Ross wasn't making negotiations to return very easy on Lionsgate. He signed a low figure deal to direct the first film, and since he wasn't signed to a multi-pic deal, the story was that he was aiming for huge A-list numbers to return. Can't really blame him considering Lionsgate had to have known The Hunger Games would be a smash hit from the start. A recent story by ThePlaylist states that Ross will not be coming back for Catching Fire, which is already in the scripting process with Simon Beaufoy(Slumdog Millionaire) writing, and a release set for November 22nd 2013. How much of their report is accurate is up for dispute, as other trade sites are stating that nothing is a done deal as of yet.
Ross really seemed to be enjoying his time with the cast and crew of The Hunger Games, and is genuinely fond of the material, having helped in the adapting process with original writer Suzanne Collins. So it wouldn't surprise me to see him return as long as Lionsgate paid him what he's due. On the other hand, Ross doesn't really do sequels. Never has. And one glimpse at his resume shows that he relishes taking on sensitive subjects, such as oppression and race with Pleasantville, and never does the same thing twice. The Hunger Games probably scratched a particular itch for him, and maybe he's done with it?
If Ross does go, expect to see some of the names he beat out for the job initially resurfacing, especially those with considerable franchise experience. Names like David Slade(The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), Andrew Adamson (The Chronicles of Narnia), and Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend). Sam Mendes (Away We Go) also was a top contender at one point.
