'Hunger Games': Will director Gary Ross return for the sequel?
It came as somewhat of a surprise when, earlier this week, word leaked out that 听肠辞-飞谤颈迟别谤/诲颈谤别肠迟辞谤 Gary Ross had for the sequel, Catching Fire 鈥� not only because of the widespread positive response to (and for) the first HG movie adaptation, but also because Ross had already begun to discuss his tentative .
Reports are now in that Ross has selected to not be involved with after all. That puts Lionsgate in somewhat of a precarious position, as the studio wants production on the sequel to get underway by this upcoming September 鈥� meaning that the search for a replacement helmer will have to be a relatively quick one.
says that Ross鈥� decision to pass on Catching Fire stems from a desire to press ahead with a different, original project that he鈥檚 more passionate about 鈥� one which, ironically, is expected to snag him a bigger payday than what Ross might鈥檝e fetched for directing the second Hunger Games flick. Still, by all accounts, money was not聽the primary motivating factor for Ross鈥� departure.
[UPDATE: 's source are reporting that Ross has not yet "formally withdrawn" from Catching Fire. The filmmaker is currently on vacation, so there presumably won't be an official confirmation either way until he returns to work.]
Truth be told, Lionsgate had already taken precautions for an event like this. The studio recruited Oscar-winning screenwriter (of Slumdog Millionaire and 127 Hours fame) to start working on the Catching Fire script, back when Ross was still busy working the promotional circuit for Hunger Games. Hence, the ball鈥檚 already off and rolling on this tentpole production.
Couple that with Fox鈥檚 newly announced 2013 聽- which will free up Jennifer Lawrence to reprise her role as Katniss Everdeen in Catching Fire this fall 鈥� and (for now) it doesn鈥檛 appear that Ross leaving the Hunger Games聽sequel聽will trip up the film too聽much聽on its way down the production pipeline.
Fan reaction to the news concerning Ross鈥� vacating the director鈥檚 chair on Catching Fire will probably be somewhat mixed, as far the immediate response goes. On the one hand, most people seem to agree that of translating Suzanne Collins鈥� popular dystopian sci-fi thriller into cinematic form; on the other hand, some of Ross鈥� stylistic choices with Hunger Games (specifically, the disorienting shaky cam/editing approach) left many viewers feeling disgruntled.
That said: a directorial switch-up can be very tricky when it comes to franchise fare 鈥� especially when studios trade in a respectable filmmaker who leaves a recognizable artistic fingerprint on the series (see: David Slade with or Bryan Singer with X2) for someone who delivers more of a generic take on the property (see: Bill Condon with or Brett Ratner with X-Men: The Last Stand). Suffice it to say, Lionsgate is gambling that it can avoid making a similar mistake with the Hunger Games franchise, by letting Ross go.
We鈥檒l be sure to let you know when a replacement director for Ross on Catching Fire has been found. In the meantime, be sure to check out our post, for our own suggestions on what the sequel鈥檚 director ought to do in order to improve on Ross鈥� first HG听蹿颈濒尘.
Sandy Schaefer blogs at .
