Top 10 Hunger Games Franchise Facts

Script written by Sean Harris

Top 10 Hunger Games Franchise Facts

Get ready for red-hot details about the 'Girl on Fire'! Join http://www.WatchMojo.com as we count down our picks for the Top 10 Hunger Games Franchise Facts!
For this list, we’ve looked at the most interesting facts and trivia surrounding the international blockbuster movie series, “The Hunger Games”!

#10: Jennifer Lawrence Has Expensive Hair

At least she does when she’s on set! A natural blonde, Jennifer Lawrence didn’t want her hair dyed and experimented with on an almost daily basis, for fear that it’d become damaged. So, to avoid doing so, the Head Hair Designer for “The Hunger Games”, Linda Flowers, rented five $6,000 lace wigs in different shades of brown, to achieve the most natural of effects. That’s $30,000 in total! But, the signature Katniss badass braid was a little less taxing… It took just 20 minutes to style!

#9: Jennifer Lawrence’s Squirrel Skills

Any squirrel on-screen with Jennifer Lawrence, best run for cover quickly! The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals quickly ascended onto some parts of “The Hunger Games”, because of the squirrel slaughter implied in it! No animals were actually harmed during filming, but Lawrence has a reputation! She was previously criticised for another notorious squirrel-skinning scene in “Winter’s Bone”, before being quoted as responding with, ‘Screw PETA!’ And she’s admitted that she can actually hunt in real life too! The Katniss actress can be quite controversial!

#8: The Swear Jar

Jennifer Lawrence is well known for being a less than typical A-list actress; she says what she wants, when she wants, and how she wants! And that last bit literally cost her while on set for “Mockingjay”… The cast and crew introduced a ‘swear jar’… The basic rules being that anytime a swear word’s said, money must be donated – especially if said in front of a younger cast member! It’s thought that Lawrence handed over around half of the final total!

#7: Donald Sutherland’s Awesome Job Application

Every great hero needs a great villain to fight against, and Donald Sutherland, as President Snow, has proven exactly that… From even before the first day of filming! Sutherland’s first point of contact with “Hunger Games” director, Gary Ross, was to write to him a three-page email, discussing ideas of power, evilness, and criminal psychology… All noted down with an ominous touch of Snow’s own tyrannical voice! Afterwards, that particular casting question was closed! The Rose Garden was Sutherland’s!

#6: Philip Seymour Hoffman Was a Week Away From Finishing

Philip Seymour Hoffman passed away February 2nd 2014, with just two scenes left to be shot for “Mockingjay – Part 2”. Initially, it had been suggested that Hoffman would be digitally recreated, in order that his character, Plutarch Heavensbee, could still feature as previously planned. However, in a December 2014 interview with Empire Magazine, the film’s director, Francis Lawrence, revealed that CGI would not be used. Lawrence said that he had no intention to ‘fake a performance’ for Hoffman, who many critics considered one of the greatest actors of his generation!

#5: Jennifer Lawrence Gave Josh Hutcherson a Concussion

It turns out Jennifer Lawrence is just as lethal off-screen as she is on it! Behind the scenes for the first film of the series, J-Law nearly knocked out her co-star, Josh Hutcherson, by kicking him in the head and giving him a concussion! The pair were fooling around in between takes, practicing their fighting skills, when Lawrence accidently landed a heavy head shot, leaving Hutcherson with one helluva headache! Hutcherson soldiered on himself though, and wasn’t diagnosed with a concussion until some time afterwards, when he had trouble recalling his home address!

#4: The Hunger Games Is Based on Greek Mythology

“Hunger Games” writer, Suzanne Collins, has revealed where a lot of her inspiration came from. Firstly, the Vietnam War, a conflict in which her father fought! Secondly, a channel-hopping experience during which news items on the Iraq War contrasted with images of reality TV… Thirdly, and perhaps most predominantly, Collins cites her love for Greek mythology as a child. “The Hunger Games” is particularly influenced by the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur! A story which scared Collins as a child, and stuck with her as an adult!

#3: Jennifer Lawrence Went Temporarily Deaf While Filming

Lawrence has a reputation for being accident-prone… And it was clearly demonstrated while filming “Catching Fire”! The Katniss actress actually went deaf in one ear, for one week, during shooting for the second movie! She’d originally picked up an ear infection while diving into stagnant water on set… But the matter was worsened when, in a later scene, she took a water jet to the side of the head, and lost her hearing entirely! Lawrence still reports occasional pain, especially when yawning! She should really get to the doctor!

#2: Suzanne Collins Is Super Rich

It probably goes without saying that Suzanne Collins made a lot of money out of “The Hunger Games”… But the scale of her riches is quite incredible! In 2013, she was listed as the third highest-earning author in the world - an especially commendable feat given that her books were released in 2008, 2009 and 2010 respectively! The film adaptations have seen Collins’ finances go through the roof, a far cry from where she started as a staff writer on Nickelodeon, working on shows such as “Clarissa Explains It All” and “Oswald”!

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Panem Is Latin for ‘Panem et Circenses’ Meaning Bread & Circuses
- Suzanne Collins Didn’t Originally Plan a Trilogy
- Vegan Woody Harrelson Is Only Shown in the Movies Eating Fruits & Vegetables
- There Might Be More Movies After ‘Mockingjay - Part 2’

#1: The Rise and Rise of Jennifer Lawrence

An actress who has more than made a name for herself away from the “Hunger Games” franchise, J-Law’s rise to the headiest heights of Hollywood, has coincided with her playing Katniss Everdeen. That fact is most apparent when the star’s paychecks are put against one another! Between $5-600,000 for the first film; $10 million for the second! Like Katniss, Lawrence turned a modest beginning into a monumental achievement! Not bad for someone who calls herself a ‘big mistake’, eh?

Do you agree with our list? Which fact did we forget? For more blockbuster top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.