Gary Ross - GalleyCat

Gary Ross May Direct Adaptation of Peter & the Starcatchers

Maryann Yin — Fri, 20 Jul 2012 11:46:36 +0000

Rumors have been swirling that The Hunger Games director Gary Ross was lured away from Catching Fire‘s director’s seat by another kidlit project; a film adaptation of Peter & the Starcatchers by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson.

MTV reported that Ross (pictured with actress Jennifer Lawrence, via) is currently talking with Disney about helming a movie version of the first book in the Peter Pan prequel series. The movie studio has already signed up The Prince screenwriter Jesse Wigutow to pen the script. Who would you cast as the Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up?

Here’s more from The Hollywood Reporter: “The Peter Pan fantasy, a prequel of sorts, follows a young Peter who befriends Molly, a shipmate he meets on the Never Land ship headed toward King Zarboff. Molly tells Peter of a mysterious trunk filled with magical starstuff that must remain out of the hands of the pirate Black Stache (who will lose his hand and become Captain Hook). Peter and Molly lead an effort to recover the trunk, which takes them on a treacherous journey.”

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Francis Lawrence to Direct ‘Catching Fire’

Maryann Yin — Mon, 07 May 2012 11:09:38 +0000

The New York Times reports that filmmaker Francis Lawrence has come on board as the director for the next installment of The Hunger Games movie series, Catching Fire. Lawrence started off his Hollywood career directing music videos. He has since progressed on to movies including literary adaptations such as Constantine (2005) and Water for Elephants (2011).

Here’s more from the article: “Mr. Lawrence said in a statement that he ‘fell in love with the characters’ of Ms. Collins’s novels, as well as ‘the themes and the world she created,’ adding that ‘this chapter opens all of these elements up in such a thrilling, emotional and surprising way.’” MTV reports that star actors Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson feel sad that Gary Ross did not sign up to direct the sequel film. However, they both look forward to working with Lawrence.

Lawrence is not the only new addition to The Hunger Games movie crew. Simon Beaufoy, the Oscar-winning screenwriter who adapted Slumdog Millionaire (2008), penned the first draft of the script for Catching Fire. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Lionsgate is negotiating with Michael Arndt, the Oscar-winning screenwriter behind Little Miss Sunshine (2006), to polish Beaufoy’s draft.

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Jennifer Lawrence & Josh Hutcherson Visit Barnes & Noble

Maryann Yin — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 14:23:42 +0000

Promoting The Hunger Games adaptation, actors Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson (pictured) visited New York City’s Barnes & Noble Union Square.

Fans camped out 24-hours before the event, vying for special bracelets that allowed them to get autographs from the stars.

The Hunger Games movie has already sold more than one million pre-sale tickets. According to Deadline, the movie could bring in as much as $125 million at the box office during its opening weekend.

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7.5 Million Copies of Hunger Games Sold Since First Movie Trailer Release

Maryann Yin — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:23:20 +0000

The Hollywood Reporter just revealed a Hunger Games cover story this month.

The article reported that 7.5 million Hunger Games books have been sold since the first trailer’s release back in November 2011.

The article included the news that Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth (the principal actors) have signed on to star in the full four-movie franchise. The trio was joined by director Gary Ross in the cover photo for this month’s issue of the magazine. Follow this link to see more pictures.

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Hunger Games Set Photos Released

Maryann Yin — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 11:47:30 +0000

Lionsgate has released photos from the set of The Hunger Games adaptation. The photo embedded above shows actors Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth in the adaptation.

Director Gary Ross complimented Hemsworth’s commitment to the role: “On first glance he’s such a hunk that it’s easy to ascribe a hunklike simplicity to him. But this is a phenomenally subtle actor, totally in control of what he was doing.”

Below, we’ve embedded a photo of Josh Hutcherson. According to Entertainment Weekly, Hutcherson gained fifteen pounds of muscle in three weeks in order to better embody his character’s physique.

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Donald Sutherland Cast in The Hunger Games

Maryann Yin — Tue, 31 May 2011 11:45:35 +0000

Golden Globe-winner Donald Sutherland (pictured, via) has been cast as President Coriolanus Snow in The Hunger Games film adaptation.

Sutherland has acted in literary adaptations including Pride & Prejudice and The Eagle. He has also played roles in the television adaptations of Ken Follet‘s Pillars of the Earth and Robert Louis Stevenson‘s Treasure Island.

Here’s more about the character from the release: “President Snow has been the autocratic ruler of Panem and its contained districts for some 25 years at the outset of the story. He is cruel and ruthless in his intimidation and control tactics.”

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Hunger Games Team Pitching Cyrano de Bergerac Adaptation

Maryann Yin — Fri, 20 May 2011 14:58:58 +0000

Director Gary Ross and producer Nina Jacobson may be working on The Hunger Games film, but they are already thinking about future projects. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the duo has pitched an adaptation of Edmond Rostand‘s Cyrano de Bergerac with a social networking twist.

Here’s more from the article: “it is understood to be a contemporary story revolving around Cyrano de Bergerac, a man who is in love with a woman but is forced to woo her surreptitiously on behalf of a far more handsome but less expressive suitor. The twist here is the story is told using today’s vast and complex social media tools.”

What do you think? At the moment The Hunger Games production team is wrapping casting. Just last week, they announced that Woody Harrelson will be playing Haymitch Abernathy.

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Hunger Games Director Defends Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen Pick

Maryann Yin — Fri, 18 Mar 2011 14:23:54 +0000

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.

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Katniss Everdeen Role Still Unfilled in The Hunger Games Adaptation

Maryann Yin — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 15:03:24 +0000

Director Gary Ross said there are no lead contenders for the main role of Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games movie.

Ross explained the process in an Entertainment Weekly interview: “I’ve talked to Suzanne extensively and I feel like I understand the character really, really well … I feel like I know who that girl needs to be.”

Producer Nina Jacobson confirmed the news in Digital Spy. However, she also revealed that auditions for acting jobs in the film will take place in early 2011.

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Gary Ross Reveals How He Scored the Director’s Chair for ‘The Hunger Games’

Maryann Yin — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 12:23:57 +0000

Director Gary Ross beat Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road), David Slade (The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), and Susanna White (Nanny McPhee Returns) in his bid to direct The Hunger Games adaptation. According to an L.A. Times article, the director brought more than just his resume to the interviews.

Here’s more from the article: “when Ross met with Lionsgate for the first time, he brought a persuasive piece of video — interviews he’d shot of his kids’ friends explaining why the books mattered to them, and what they loved about the series’ heroine, Katniss Everdeen. ‘What was amazing was how insightful these kids were about this book and about Katniss as a character,’ says producer Nina Jacobson. ‘It was so clear that Gary was interested in what the fans cared about.’”

Author Suzanne Collins recently talked about the process of writing the first draft of The Hunger Games movie script. Back in October, Jacobson predicted that the film will have a PG-13 rating. (Via io9)

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