How The Cast Of The Hunger Games Should Really Look

As any good tribute of Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games knows, the film series took a
few creative liberties in adapting the novels to the big screen.
From adding additional scenes to removing characters — and whatever was happening
with Seneca Crane's beard — the movies were definitely distinct from their source material,
for better and for worse.
One of the subtler shifts came in the form of the characters' looks, which tended to
differ from their literary descriptions.
Here's how the The Hunger Games cast should really look.
"This is what they do and we must fight back."
Katniss Everdeen
Jennifer Lawrence's version of Katniss Everdeen sported an ornate braid to manage her long,
brown hair, and she had humble clothing indicative of her life in one of Panem's less favored
districts.
She also had greenish-blue eyes and didn't exactly look like she'd been on the brink
of starvation.
And while her ability to wield a bow and fight for her dinner was accurate, there were still
some differences to be found with her appearance.
In the books, the Girl on Fire was described as having grey eyes and being much shorter
and more gaunt than her screen counterpart.
But since J-Law's notorious love of french fries is such a big part of why she's so awesome,
no one seemed to care that she wasn't skin and bones for the role, even if the movie
was called The Hunger Games.
Peeta Mellark
The gamemakers — er, filmmakers — got a lot of things right when it came to bringing
the Boy with the Bread to cinematic life with actor Josh Hutcherson.
But they also missed the mark on a few important points as well.
In the movies, Peeta has the same dishwater blonde hair, with a medium height and a stocky
build earned the hard way by hauling flour around his parents' bakery.
He also had hazel peepers and walked around without any serious injury … well until
the end of Catching Fire anyway.
"Peeta!
NO!"
In the books, though, Peeta lost his leg in the first Games and had blue eyes, with wavier
hair.
These are just minor differences, but for the Team Peeta faithful, they were still significant.
Gale Hawthorne
If there's one character who was well-matched with his actor counterpart's looks, it was
Liam Hemsworth as District 12's handiest hunk, Gale Hawthorne.
In the films, he's a tall, alluringly handsome, and strong gentleman with the same dark hair
and grey eyes that mark so many of the coal miners' children, and he could totally pass
for Katniss' cousin.
But there were still a few leaps from the source material in his depiction.
The book version of the character was much more olive-toned, young, and lean from so
many missed meals.
Cinna
The filmmakers stuck with Lenny Kravitz's natural chocolate brown eyes for his turn
as Cinna and opted to add in some facial hair and earrings to round out his looks.
Plus, he rocked some low-key fashions and steered clear of the Capitol makeup selections,
save for some gold eyeliner.
In the books, though, Katniss' fabulous stylist was described as having green eyes with flecks
of gold scattered throughout.
Even without the right eye color and a couple of extra earrings, Kravitz embodied all the
swagger and self-possession that Cinna called for — and then some — so he was a fan-favorite
despite the differences.
Effie Trinket
This Capitol escort's flair for extreme fashion and hair appliances certainly came through
in The Hunger Games movies.
However, there were still some minor deviations from the well-described costumery and wigs
Elizabeth Banks sported throughout the written series.
In The Hunger Games, her pink wig was considered ridiculous and slid out of place, and in Catching
Fire, she was said to have donned a pumpkin-colored headdress rather than the canary situation
she wore on her head.
Even though she had a few outfit and hairstyle changes, however, that was definitely Effie
we saw up there on the big screen.
"Happy Hunger Games and may the odds be ever in your favor."
Haymitch Abernathy
In the films, Haymitch was a morose, disheveled alcoholic who disgusted Katniss with his lack
of composure.
He also had straight blond locks and blue eyes and never stumbled and fumbled his way
through life in Victor Village.
In the books, however, Haymitch was said to have dark curly hair with the same grey eyes
as his fellow coal district alums.
It was pretty easy to forget that the hair and eye colors were off because of how convincing
Harrelson was as the mentor who decided to shape up his act enough to help his girl "stay
alive" in the arena.
But for the nitpickers out there, the casting choice was still a confusing one.
Primrose Everdeen
Willow Shields' turn as the little sister who accidentally started a revolution was
convincing enough.
She was slight and sweet and believable as the girl you'd go to bat for.
However, in the books she was said to have crystal blue eyes and weighed no more than
"seventy pounds soaking wet," which was not the case on-screen.
President Snow
Donald Sutherland's screen turn as President Snow was one of the biggest changes from the
written origins because, while he was menacing enough with his refined sense of evil, he
didn't match the book's description of the small, thin, sinister-looking villain of the
books, with a botched enhancement job on his lips, and snake's eyes to match the unsettling
appearance.
Hey, at least they got the white rose on his lapel right — of course, that'd be a hard
one to screw up.
Finnick Odair
Whether or not Sam Claflin's version of Finnick Odair matched the extraordinarily good-looking
muscleman he was described to be is a matter of subjective perspective, but the filmmakers
certainly gave his frame some consideration when casting the role.
Not only is he athletic, tan, and cocky, but he's also adequately redeemed by his penchant
for both shirtlessness and sugar cubes on-screen.
Plus, he clung to his trusty trident as tightly as he was supposed to.
The most noticeable difference from the books?
The fact that his sea-green eyes weren't as striking onscreen, and his hair was more sandy
blonde than bronze, as written.
Johanna Mason
Personality-wise, Jena Malone's screen edition of Johanna Mason was a dead ringer for the
sassy, sharp-tongued girl we grew to know and love in the books.
“Ha, well yes, I’m angry.
You know I’m getting totally screwed over here.”
“Uh huh.”
“The deal was that if I win the Hunger Games, I get to live the rest of my life in peace.”
But as accurate as they got her character, her appearance in the films was a little different.
On-screen, she was lean and traditionally pretty with long brown locks — well, until
they were shaved off by the Capitol.
In the books, meanwhile, her eyes were said to be wide, while her hair was worn with a
signature spike.
She was also perceived by readers as being more muscular, seeing as she was from the
lumberjack district and all.
President Alma Coin
Julianne Moore's screen version of President Coin was pretty faithful to the books, in
that she was a middle-aged woman with wig-like gray hair and a colorless pallor.
However, she looked like she was in her late 30s and just wore a gray wig to age herself,
while the book version pegged her for around 50 and with her silvery eye color being a
lot more distinct.
Foxface
In the Hunger Games movie, Jacqueline Emerson's vision of Foxface had bright red hair and
an aptitude for stealth and low-key survivalism, but she's hardly meek, and she certainly couldn't
be confused for an animal.
In the book, however, she was described as having a face which had, well, fox-like features
— hence Katniss's name for her.
Anyone can open a bottle of red hair dye and say they're Foxface, but to look the part
is something else entirely.
Thresh
If Thresh had appeared as imposing as he was written, there's no way audiences would believe
he'd been killed in one-on-one combat with Cato, even if the latter was a career tribute.
“I’m prepared, vicious, I’m ready to go.”
“Cato!”
As portrayed played by Dayo Okeniyi in the movie, he was strong and tough, but he was
also rather approachable in size and demeanor, which made his decision to forego killing
Katniss when he had the opportunity that much more believable.
Meanwhile, in the book, he's described as having golden eyes, standing well over six
feet tall, and sporting the build of an ox from so many days in the agriculture sector.
Rue
Aw, Rue.
A vocal contingent of Hunger Games readers were up in arms about the fact that Rue, as
played by Amandla Stenberg, was portrayed as having brown skin in the the first film.
Of course, those fans clearly misunderstood the source material.
While Rue was said to resemble Katniss's sister Prim in size and innocence, she was specifically
described as being black in the book.
The film's representation of the tiny, feisty, and quick-on-her-feet pre-teen was accurate
to the writing and gave her that same smile that affected Katniss so in both versions.
She wasn't quite as frail as she was on paper, but that's about the only major difference
to be found.
Otherwise, she was perfect.
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How The Cast Of The Hunger Games Should Really Look

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