Lionsgate scored by far the biggest theatrical hit in its history with The Hunger Games, as the film has now grossed $391.9 million domestically and continues to attract repeat viewers.  For the last few months, we've been focused on Catching Fire, the adaptation of Suzanne Collins' second novel in the series set for theatrical release in November of next year. 

While fans have been justifiably upset by the absence of director Gary Ross on the sequel, today brings happy news: The Hunger Games will be available on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital download this August 18th.

Even before Kick-Ass hit theaters in the Spring of 2010, there was talk of a sequel to the adaptation of Mark Millar's ultraviolent comic book series.  After the film debuted, sequel discussions continued, even as a follow-up looked increasingly improbable, if not impossible.  Often, reports of progress on the next installment in the Kick-Ass saga came from hyperbole-prone Millar himself, but apparently Kick-Ass 2 might actually, really happen soon.

Lionsgate has officially announced that they've found a director for The Hunger Games sequel Catching Fire, with Francis Lawrence set to take over as helmer in the place of Gary Ross. 

Ross, who directed the phenomenally successful film adaptation of Suzanne Collins's dystopian novel, opted not to return for the first of three planned sequels, citing the rushed schedule required to meet an already-announced November 2013 release date.  As the release date loomed and scheduling issues became paramount, Lionsgate needed to find a Catching Fire director, and needed to do so post haste.

Pop quiz, hotshot.  You're Lionsgate, the mini-major studio that has scored the biggest hit in its history with The Hunger Games, which has now grosses more than $534 million globally.  With a release date already announced for Catching Fire, the first of what will likely be three sequels, and some scheduling complications, you discover that The Hunger Games director and co-writer has surprisingly opted not to return.  Who do you pick to replace him and make that all-important release date?

Well that was dramatic.  After co-writing and directing The Hunger Games, easily the biggest movie in Lionsgate's history and his career, Gary Ross has decided not to return for the sequel, Catching Fire.  Ross himself, who made the first film a critical hit in addition to a commercial juggernaut, released a statement making it official.  While early reports cited difficult negotiations, the director explicitly denies that this was not the case, and instead says, "I simply don’t have the time I need to write and prep the movie I would have wanted to make because of the fixed and tight production schedule.'

In two weeks of release, The Hunger Games has now grossed $384.3 million dollars globally, while also earning a pretty ecstatic response from critics, fans of the novel by Suzanne Collins, and general audiences.  So you'd think that co-writer and director Gary Ross would be eager to return to the futuristic dystopia of Panem.  Evidently not, as Ross has opted not to direct the sequel, Catching Fire.

Lionsgate looked to the horizon with The Hunger Games, spending the last year playing to the novel's considerable fanbase, first by ensuring that every part of casting was a big deal, then by consistently reminding everyone that the film was on the way and was gonna be huge.  Today, the adaptation of the first novel in Suzanne Collins's dystopian trilogy opens nationwide, and it looks like The Hunger Games will live up the commercial hype.  According to Lionsgate, the film earned an estimated $19.7 million at midnight screenings already.

On the eve of its release, The Hunger Games is enjoying the kind of critical reception that most movies can only dream of and is preparing for an opening weekend that distributor Lionsgate and pretty much everyone else in the nation are expecting to be massive.  Anticipation amongst fans of the novel by Suzanne Collins and the moviegoing public at large is at a fever pitch.  The Hunger Games is everywhere at the moment.

Set in the futuristic dystopia of Panem and focusing on an annual twenty-four person death match between young people is televised for entertainment and as a reminder of governmental power, The Hunger Games could have easily become just the kind of slick entertainment that it subtextually criticizes.  Instead, it's a smart, thrilling science fiction film with smartly drawn characters and a subtle, knowing depiction of a world out of whack.

That The Hunger Games turned out as such can be largely attributed to director Gary Ross, and his effective choices are reflected by his unexpected cast, from lead Jennifer Lawrence through supporting players Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, and Wes Bentley.  At the Los Angeles press junket for the film, IAR was lucky enough to sit in on roundtable interviews with Ross, as well as Banks, Kravitz, and Bentley.  All four were eager to discuss the source material, the film's development, outlandish makeup, their leading lady, and preparation for the first sequel, Catching Fire.

Some topical news on the eve of St. Patrick's Day today, folks.  Tomorrow, after getting thoroughly housed on cheap, watery, disgustingly green-dyed beer, we can all pass out peacefully in puddles of our own vomit knowing that Leprechaun will be remade.  That's right, the film that kicked off the campy, improbable straight-to-video franchise, is going to be recreated with "a modern-day spin."

Three weeks out from the release of The Hunger Games and you best believe that Lionsgate is working overtime to keep the fanbase foaming at the mouth whilst also attracting a wider audience.  With TV spots beginning their rotation in earnest, the first full-on official clip from the adaptation of Suzanne Collins's novel has debuted online, and like the story's heroine, it gets the job done with style.