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.

After opening to the third-biggest domestic debut weekend of all time, legitimate pop culture phenomenon The Hunger Games has grossed $368.0 million globally.  It's done so in under two weeks of theatrical release.  So with by far the biggest hit in its history, Lionsgate is naturally keen to continue the series with Catching Fire, the already announced adaptation of Suzanne Collins's novel.  But apparently it's not a guarantee that Gary Ross, who co-wrote and directed The Hunger Games, will be back for another round.

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.

Opening in theaters on March 23rd is the highly anticipated new film The Hunger Games, which is based on the extremely popular novel of the same name by author Suzanne Collins. The film was directed by Gary Ross (Seabiscuit), and stars Academy Award-nominee Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone) as the story's hero Katniss Everdeen, as well as Josh Hutcherson (Journey 2: The Mysterious Island), Liam Hemsworth (The Last Song), Woody Harrelson (Rampart), Elizabeth Banks (Man on a Ledge), Lenny Kravitz (Precious), Stanley Tucci (The Lovely Bones), Toby Jones (My Week With Marilyn), Wes Bentley (There Be Dragons), and Donald Sutherland (Klute). 

IAR's Managing Editor Jami Philbrick recently had the pleasure of sitting down with actor Wes Bentley to discuss his role as Seneca Crane in The Hunger Games. The actor discussed the new film, his pivotal role, getting the part, his character's unique facial hair, the inspiration he gained for his role from watching reality television, director Gary Ross' vision for the film, and the brilliant world that author Suzanne Collins has created. 

At this point, does The Hunger Games really need an introduction?  The sheer ubiquity of promotion for the film, combined with its ecstatic critical reception and the general anticipation surrounding it, suggest that no intro is necessary.  You know the basic story by now: in the future, the totalitarian society of Panem enjoys an annual survival competition that pits twenty-four young people from the nation's twelve districts against one another, with only one allowed to survive. The first book in Suzanne Collins's trilogy of dystopian novels became a bestseller with an appeal far beyond its young adult classification, and Lionsgate has been expertly hyping the film adaptation for months.

A year ago, the talk was all about casting.  Specifically, it was centered around who should play the three central characters in the trilogy: heroine Katniss Everdeen and her fellow District 12 residents Peeta Mellark and Gale Hawthorne.  Jennifer Lawrence, an Oscar nominee for her work in Winter's Bone, won the role of Katniss, while Josh Hutcherson of The Kids Are All Right and The Last Song's Liam Hemsworth signed on to play Peeta and Gale, respectively.

With anticipation for The Hunger Games reaching a fever pitch, all three young thespians were happy to talk about the film at the Los Angeles press conference.  IAR was lucky enough to participate in roundtable interviews with Lawrence, Hutcherson, and Hemsworth.  In the midst of a huge promotional push, the actors were happy to talk about the novels, the film, their physical training, and the seeming inevitability of sequels Catching Fire and Mockingjay.

The fourth official clip from The Hunger Games has arrived online.  It's a quick one, clocking in at well under one minute, but it is the first to focus on the relationship between Katniess Everdeen and Gale Hawthorne, played respectively by Jennifer Lawrence and Gale Hawthorne.