It’s kind of a bittersweet week for Hunger Games fans, isn’t it? We can barely contain our excitement over the fact that Mockingjay Part 2 is finally, finally in theatres, but at the same time with this film comes the official end of the franchise.
Can Katniss and the rebels take back The Capitol? Can Peeta be saved? These are questions that avid book readers already know, of course, but ones that have been pressing on the minds of movie-goers everywhere.
An even bigger question, however, is what would Hunger Games have looked like without Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth or Josh Hutcherson? Pretty different, if you ask us — especially if you consider these 14 stars who almost nabbed some of the franchise’s bigger roles.
14 stars who were almost cast in ‘The Hunger Games’
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Shailene Woodley
Would you rather have seen the star in Divergent or Hunger Games? Because as it turns out, had she landed the role of Katniss as planned, we could have had a whole new Tris. Getty
Alexander Ludwig
Vikings' Ragnar Lothbrok's favoured son almost landed the role of the breadmaker’s son too; sadly he was cut. In a meant-to-be twist, however, he showed up later as Cato instead.Getty
Alex Pettyfer
Before he was making nice with the boys on Magic Mike, Alex Pettyfer was up for the role of Peeta Mellark. Well, sort of. He had been in mind, but was still waiting for a script when the role went to Josh Hutcherson. Getty
Dakota Fanning
Is there such thing as being “too” famous? There is when it comes to the role of Katniss. That’s apparently why Fanning was passed over for the gig. Good thing J-Law exploded after the original film, huh?Getty
David Henrie
Could you have seen the former Wizards of Waverly Place star and Ted’s future son on How I Met Your Mother as Gale Hawthorne? Neither could Hunger Games producers, although they did consider him for a brief period of time. Getty
Emily Browning
We all know the Legend star knows how to throw a Sucker Punch, but apparently she was in mind for a much bigger role – that of Katniss. Sadly, she had never read the books and wasn’t interested in a trilogy anyhow. At least that’s the reason she said she didn’t want the leading role in the Twilight films either.Getty
Kaya Scodelario
The Maze Runner star, however, was supposedly “gutted” when she lost out on the role of Katniss. Getty
Evan Peters
If Peters had of nabbed the role of Peeta as he’d hoped, we would have never seen all of his creepy iterations in American Horror StoryGetty
Hailee Steinfeld
An Oscar nominee and an early favourite for the role of Katniss Everdeen, Hailee was in talks with the director and everything. Then JLaw came along and the rest, as the say, is history. Getty
John C. Reilly
It’s hard to picture anyone other than Woody Harrelson in the boozy role of Haymitch Abernathy, but before the former Cheers star hopped on board it was John C. Reilly who was rumoured for the part. Getty
Lucas Till
The X-Men star may know how to wreak Havok on the big screen, but apparently he didn’t quite have what it took to pull off the role of Peeta either. Getty
Lyndsy Fonseca
The former Nikita badass has a proven track record when it comes to kicking butt and taking names. Sadly, it wasn’t enough for her to convince producers that she would make the perfect Katniss. Getty
Taylor Kitsch
Because clearly Hunger Games needed more eye candy, this Canadian reportedly made it into the Top 3 choices to play Finnick Odair, a role that eventually went to Sam Claflin.Getty
Emma Roberts
Roberts was one of the earliest names attached to the project — but not even nepotism could land her the eventual gig of Katniss. That’s okay, since had that happened, she wouldn’t have had the opportunity to become Ryan Murphy’s muse. Getty
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