Inside Movies got interviewed The Hunger Games director Gary Ross. He explained why he cast Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen–a choice criticized by fans yesterday.

Ross explained: “This is a girl who needs to incite a revolution. We can’t have an insubstantial person play her, and we can’t have someone who’s too young to play this. Suzanne [Collins] was incredibly adamant about this. Far from being too old, she was very concerned that we would cast someone who was too young. In Suzanne’s mind, and in mine, Katniss is not a young girl. It’s important for her to be a young woman. She’s a maternal figure in her family.”

Ross said he appreciated fans’ passion, but he also needed to satisfy Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins. Now Ross must find actors to play Peeta Mellark, Gale Hawthorne, Prim Everdeen, and other characters.