''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' is a 2013 American

dystopian A dystopia (lit. "bad place") is an imagined world or society in which people lead wretched, dehumanized, fearful lives. It is an imagined place (possibly state) in which everything is unpleasant or bad, typically a totalitarian or environmenta ...

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

directed by

Francis Lawrence Francis Lawrence (born March 26, 1971) is an American filmmaker and producer. After establishing himself as a director of music videos and commercials, Lawrence made his feature-length directorial debut with the superhero thriller ''Constantine ...

from a screenplay by

Simon Beaufoy Simon Beaufoy (; born 26 December 1966) is a British screenwriter. Born in Keighley, West Riding of Yorkshire, he was educated at Malsis School in Glusburn, Ermysted's Grammar School and Sedbergh School, he read English at St Peter's College ...

and Michael deBruyn, based on the 2009 novel ''

Catching Fire ''Catching Fire'' is a 2009 dystopian young adult fiction novel by the American novelist Suzanne Collins, the second book in ''The Hunger Games'' series. As the sequel to the 2008 bestseller ''The Hunger Games'', it continues the story of a n ...

'' by

Suzanne Collins Suzanne Collins (born August 10, 1962) is an American author and television writer who is best known as the author of the young adult literature, young adult Dystopian fiction, dystopian book series ''The Hunger Games''. She is also the author ...

. The sequel to ''

The Hunger Games ''The Hunger Games'' are a series of Young adult fiction, young adult Dystopian fiction, dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The series consists of a trilogy that follows teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and two ...

'' (2012), it is the second installment in ''The Hunger Games'' film series. The film stars

Jennifer Lawrence Jennifer Shrader Lawrence (born August 15, 1990) is an American actress and producer. She is known for starring in both action film franchises and independent dramas, and her films have grossed over $6 billion worldwide. The List of high ...

Josh Hutcherson Joshua Ryan Hutcherson (born October 12, 1992) is an American actor. He began acting in the early 2000s and appeared in several commercials and minor film and television roles before gaining prominence in his teenage years with main roles in ' ...

Liam Hemsworth Liam Hemsworth (born 13 January 1990) is an Australian actor. He played the roles of Josh Taylor (Neighbours), Josh Taylor in the soap opera ''Neighbours'' and Marcus in the children's television series ''The Elephant Princess''. In American fi ...

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor. He first became known for his role as bartender Woody Boyd on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1985–1993), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in ...

Elizabeth Banks Elizabeth Irene Banks (; February 10, 1974) is an American actress, director, and producer. She is known for playing chaperone Effie Trinket in ''The Hunger Games'' film series (2012–2015) and an ICCA commentator in the ''Pitch Perfect'' ...

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. His debut album ''Let Love Rule (Lenny Kravitz album), Let Love Rule'' (1989) was characterized by a blend of Rock music, rock ...

Philip Seymour Hoffman Philip Seymour Hoffman (July 23, 1967 – February 2, 2014) was an American actor. Known for his distinctive supporting and character actor, character roles—eccentrics, underdogs, and misfits—he acted in many films and theatrical productio ...

Jeffrey Wright Jeffrey Wright (born December 7, 1965) is an American actor. His accolades include a Primetime Emmy Award, a Tony Award, and a Golden Globe Award, in addition to a nomination for an Academy Award. Wright began his career in theater, where he g ...

Stanley Tucci Stanley Tucci Jr. ( ; born November 11, 1960) is an American actor. Known as a character actor, he has played a wide variety of roles ranging from menacing to sophisticated, earning numerous accolades, including six Emmy Awards and two Golden ...

, and

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (17 July 1935 – 20 June 2024) was a Canadian actor. With a career spanning six decades, he received List of awards and nominations received by Donald Sutherland, numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award ...

. In the film,

Katniss Everdeen Katniss Everdeen is a fictional character and the main protagonist of ''The Hunger Games'' trilogy written by American author Suzanne Collins. She is portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence in the film adaptations of the trilogy. Katniss and her family ...

(Lawrence) and

Peeta Mellark Peeta Mellark is a fictional character of ''The Hunger Games'' trilogy written by American author Suzanne Collins. He is portrayed by actor Josh Hutcherson in ''The Hunger Games'' film series. Peeta is the male tribute representing District 1 ...

(Hutcherson) become targets of the Capitol after their victory in the Games inspire uprisings in

Panem ''The Hunger Games'' are a series of young adult dystopian novels written by American author Suzanne Collins. The series consists of a trilogy that follows teenage protagonist Katniss Everdeen, and two prequels. ''The Hunger Games'' universe ...

. Lionsgate announced a sequel film based on Collins' second ''Hunger Games'' novel in 2012, with

Gary Ross Gary Ross (born November 3, 1956) is an American screenwriter, director, and producer. He is best known for writing and directing the fantasy comedy-drama film '' Pleasantville'' (1998), the sports drama film ''Seabiscuit'' (2003), the dystopia ...

initially set to return as director; Ross was replaced with Lawrence that May, while deBruyn completed several rewrites to Beaufoy's screenplay. The main cast was confirmed by September 2012 and principal photography began later that month, lasting until March 2013. Filming locations included

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' premiered at the

Odeon Leicester Square The Odeon Luxe Leicester Square is a prominent cinema building in the West End of London. Built in the Art Deco style and completed in 1937, the building has been continually altered in response to developments in cinema technology, and was the ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on November 11, 2013, and was released in the United States on November 22, by

Lionsgate Lions Gate, Lion Gate or similar terms may refer to: Gates *Lion Gate at Mycenae in Greece *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the ancient Hittite city of Hattusa, now in Turkey *Lion Gate, one of the entrances to the gardens of Hampton Court Pala ...

. The film, often considered the best in the series, received critical acclaim from critics, with praise for Lawrence's performance, its themes, action sequences, musical score, screenplay, visual effects, and emotional depth. It grossed $865 million, setting the then-records for biggest November opening weekend and the biggest

Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...

period box-office totals; it is the highest-grossing Lionsgate and ''The Hunger Games'' film, the fifth-highest-grossing film of 2013, and the highest-grossing film featuring a female lead since ''

The Exorcist ''The Exorcist'' is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on The Exorcist (novel), his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller (play ...

'' (1973). Among its accolades, the film was nominated for the

Broadcast Film Critics Association Award The Critics' Choice Awards (formerly known as the Broadcast Film Critics Association Award) is an awards show presented annually by the American Critics Choice Association (CCA) to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Written ballots are ...

for Best Action Film and a

Saturn Award The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films bel ...

for Best Science Fiction Film. For her performance, Lawrence was nominated for the

Empire Award The Empire Awards was an annual British awards ceremony honouring cinematic achievements in the local and global film industry. Winners were awarded the Empire Award statuette. The awards, first presented in 1996, were presented by the British ...

, and

for Best Actress. The

soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...

's lead single, "

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of world map, maps of Earth or of a continent or region of Earth. Advances in astronomy have also resulted in atlases of the celestial sphere or of other planets. Atlases have traditio ...

" by

Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...

, was nominated for the

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

for Best Song Written for Visual Media and for the

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

for

Best Original Song The following is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various films, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best ...

. The film was followed by its third and final installment in a two-part sequel: '' The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1'' in 2014 and '' The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2'' in 2015.

Plot

and

have settled into a life of material comfort and emotional unease back in

District 12 District 12 may refer to: * District 12 (Ho Chi Minh city), Vietnam *Schwamendingen, Zürich, Switzerland, also known as District 12 * District 12, an electoral district of Malta * District 12 (Hunger Games), fictional district in the Hunger Games ...

following their joint victory in the 74th Hunger Games. Katniss was traumatized from the Games and remains emotionally distant from Peeta.

President Snow Coriolanus "Coryo" Snow is a character in ''The Hunger Games'' franchise, a book series and film series. In the original book trilogy (2008–2010), President Snow is the dictator of the state of Panem through the end of the Second Rebellion, ...

visits Katniss and reveals that her defiance in the Games has inspired revolts across Panem. To suppress the rebellion, he demands that she and Peeta feign love during the Victory Tour, threatening to destroy District 12 and kill their families if they refuse. During their Victory Tour, Katniss and Peeta's speeches only lead to further unrest across the districts. The two publicly announce their engagement to persuade Panem's citizens of their love, but President Snow remains unconvinced. At the Capitol, Katniss meets the mysterious new head Gamemaker

Plutarch Heavensbee The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

. Upon returning home, Katniss witnesses the brutality of the Capitol's Peacekeepers. Gale is publicly whipped for trying to intervene in their beating of civilians, leading to a violent confrontation that results in Katniss, Peeta and Haymitch's involvement. The 75th Hunger Games, the third Quarter Quell, is announced with a twist: tributes will be chosen from the victors. As the only female victor from District 12, Katniss must compete. At the Reaping, Effie draws Haymitch’s name, but Peeta volunteers for him. To disrupt the Games, Peeta lies during his pre-Games interview, claiming he and Katniss are married and expecting a child, causing an uproar among the Capitol's citizens. Ordered by Snow, Katniss wears a wedding dress for her interview, which Cinna designs to shift into a

Mockingjay ''Mockingjay'' is a 2010 dystopian young adult fiction novel by American author Suzanne Collins. It is chronologically the last installment of ''The Hunger Games'' series, following 2008's ''The Hunger Games'' and 2009's '' Catching Fire''. T ...

symbol. Just before Katniss enters the arena, Cinna is brutally beaten in front of her, before he is later killed for altering the dress. In the Games, Katniss and Peeta ally with Finnick Odair and Mags from District 4. They face deadly poisonous fog at night; when Peeta is injured, Mags sacrifices herself so they can escape. They also battle mutated

mandrills The mandrill (''Mandrillus sphinx'') is a large Old World monkey native to west central Africa. It is one of the most colorful mammals in the world, with red and blue skin on its face and posterior. The species is sexually dimorphic, as male ...

, during which the female victor from District 6 sacrifices herself to save Peeta's life. Fleeing to the beach, the group unites with Beetee and Wiress from District 3, and Johanna Mason, the female victor from District 7. Wiress discovers the arena is designed like a clock, with dangers recurring at intervals. The Careers suddenly ambush the group. Katniss and Johanna kill Gloss and Cashmere, the victors from District 1, but Wiress is killed in the encounter. Beetee plans to lure the remaining Careers to the beach and electrocute them with lightning every 12 hours. The group prepares the trap by laying a wire from a tree to the shore. When District 2 victors Brutus and Enobaria arrive, Johanna incapacitates Katniss, removes the tracker from her arm, and flees. Katniss discovers an unconscious Beetee, seemingly electrocuted by the arena's force field. Hearing a cannon (signaling Brutus's death) and unable to find Peeta, Katniss nearly attacks Finnick, suspecting betrayal. He reminds her of the real enemy. Katniss shoots the wire attached to an arrow into the arena's roof just as lightning strikes; the electricity destroys the force fields, blows a hole in the roof, and shuts down the arena's systems, but also knocks Katniss unconscious, and she is rescued by a hovercraft. Katniss wakes in the hovercraft with Haymitch, Finnick, unconscious Beetee, and Heavensbee. Haymitch reveals they are headed to

District 13 ''District B13'' ( French title ''Banlieue 13'' or ''B13''), is a 2004 French action film directed by Pierre Morel, produced by Luc Besson, and written by Besson and Bibi Naceri. It depicts parkour in several action sequences, which was complet ...

, headquarters of the rebellion. He explains that some tributes were part of the plan to rescue her, but the Capitol captured Peeta and Johanna. Enraged by Haymitch's failure to save Peeta, Katniss attacks him before she is sedated. She later wakes in District 13 with Gale, who assures her that her family is safe, but the Capitol has destroyed District 12.

Cast

Gale Hawthorne The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Haymitch Abernathy The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Effie Trinket The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

as Cinna *

as Beetee Latier *

Caesar Flickerman The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

President Coriolanus Snow Coriolanus "Coryo" Snow is a character in ''The Hunger Games'' franchise, a book series and film series. In the original book trilogy (2008–2010), President Snow is the dictator of the state of Panem through the end of the Second Rebellion, ...

Toby Jones Toby Edward Heslewood Jones''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 7 September 1966) is an English actor. He is known for his extensive character actor roles on stage and screen. From 1989 ...

as Claudius Templesmith *

Willow Shields Willow Shields (born June 1, 2000) is an American actress. She is known for her portrayal of Primrose Everdeen in the sci-fi dystopian adventure film series ''The Hunger Games'' (2012–2015). She earned nominations for a Young Hollywood Award ...

Primrose Everdeen The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Sam Claflin Samuel George Claflin (; born 27 June 1986) is a British actor. After graduating from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art in 2009, he began his acting career on television and had his first film role as Philip Swift in '' Pirates of t ...

Finnick Odair The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Lynn Cohen Lynn Harriette Cohen (née Kay; August 10, 1933 – February 14, 2020) was an American actress known for her roles in film, television and theater. She was particularly known for her role as Magda in the HBO series ''Sex and the City'', which sh ...

as Mags Flanagan *

Jena Malone Jena Laine Malone (; born November 21, 1984) is an American actress. Born in Sparks, Nevada, Malone spent her early life there and in Las Vegas, while her mother acted in local theater productions. Inspired to become an actress herself, Malone ...

Johanna Mason The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Amanda Plummer Amanda Michael Plummer (born March 23, 1957) is an American actress. She is known for her work on stage and for her film roles, including '' Joe Versus the Volcano'' (1990), ''The Fisher King'' (1991), ''Pulp Fiction'' (1994), and '' The Hunge ...

Wiress The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Meta Golding Meta Golding is a Haitian-American actress. Life and career Golding was born in India in 1971. Her parents were international aid workers and she was raised in several countries. Besides the United States, Golding also lived in India, Haiti, Fr ...

Enobaria The following is a list of characters in ''The Hunger Games'' novels, a series of young adult science fiction novels by Suzanne Collins whose original trilogy was later adapted into a series of feature films. Overview Main characters Kat ...

Bruno Gunn Bruno Gunn (born November 8, 1968) is an American actor. He is best known for playing Brutus in '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' and Walrus on HBO's Westworld. Life and career Gunn started his acting career 1997, with a cameo in the Comedy C ...

Brutus Marcus Junius Brutus (; ; 85 BC – 23 October 42 BC) was a Roman politician, orator, and the most famous of the assassins of Julius Caesar. After being adopted by a relative, he used the name Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus, which was reta ...

Alan Ritchson Alan Michael Ritchson (born November 28, 1982) is an American actor. He made his acting debut as Aquaman / Arthur Curry on The CW superhero series ''Smallville'' (2005–2010), where he appeared as a guest star between the fifth and 10th seas ...

as Gloss * Stephanie Leigh Schlund as Cashmere *

Patrick St. Esprit Patrick St. Esprit (born May 18, 1954) is an American character actor, best known for playing tough, authoritative roles such as Romulus Thread in ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'', Elliot Oswald in ''Sons of Anarchy'' and Los Angeles Police De ...

as Romulus Thread *

Paula Malcomson Paula Malcomson (born 1 June 1970) is a Northern Irish actress. She is sometimes credited as Paula Williams. She is known for playing Trixie in ''Deadwood'' (2004–2006), Maureen Ashby in ''Sons of Anarchy'' (2010), and Asterid Everdeen in ''T ...

as Mrs. Everdeen *

Stef Dawson Stef Dawson is an Australian actress. She portrayed Annie Cresta in '' The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1'' and '' Part 2''. She also made a cameo appearance in '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire''. Personal life Dawson was born in Canberr ...

as Annie Cresta * Nelson Ascencio as

Flavius The gens Flavia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. Its members are first mentioned during the last three centuries of the Republic. The first of the Flavii to achieve prominence was Marcus Flavius, tribune of the plebs in 327 and 323 BC; how ...

* Bruce Bundy as Octavia * E. Roger Mitchell as

Chaff Chaff (; ) is dry, scale-like plant material such as the protective seed casings of cereal grains, the scale-like parts of flowers, or finely chopped straw. Chaff cannot be digested by humans, but it may be fed to livestock, ploughed into soil ...

Production

Pre-production

announced that a film adaptation of ''

'' would be released as ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' on November 22, 2013, as a sequel to the

film adaptation A film adaptation transfers the details or story of an existing source text, such as a novel, into a feature film. This transfer can involve adapting most details of the source text closely, including characters or plot points, or the original sou ...

of ''

'', with

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

to take place in September 2012.

was hired to write the script for the film and wrote two drafts before leaving after

, director of ''The Hunger Games'' decided not to direct the sequel. The shooting timeframe was co-ordinated between Lionsgate and

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

, in order to allow time for

to shoot '' X-Men: Days of Future Past'', the sequel to Fox's '' X-Men: First Class'', in January 2013. On April 10, 2012, it was announced that Gary Ross, director of ''The Hunger Games'', would not return due to a 'tight' and 'fitted' schedule. Ross cited the lack of time he had for directing and writing the film in the three and a half months after the release of the first film as the reason for leaving the franchise, hence his decision to move on to direct ''

Free State of Jones Jones County is in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 67,246. Its county seats are Laurel and Ellisville. Jones County is part of the Laurel micropolitan area. History Less t ...

''.

Bennett Miller Bennett Altman Miller (born December 30, 1966) is an American film director who is known for having directed the films ''Capote (film), Capote'' (2005), ''Moneyball (film), Moneyball'' (2011), and ''Foxcatcher'' (2014). He has been nominated twic ...

Joe Cornish Joseph Murray Cornish (born 20 December 1968) is an English comedian and filmmaker. With Adam Buxton, he forms the comedy duo Adam and Joe. In 2011, Cornish released his directorial debut ''Attack the Block''. He also co-wrote ''The Adventures ...

and Juan Antonio Bayona were all being considered to direct the new film. On April 19, 2012, it was announced that Francis Lawrence was offered the director position for the film. Lionsgate officially announced Francis Lawrence as the director for ''Catching Fire'' on May 3, 2012. Two days later, it was reported that

Michael Arndt Michael Arndt is an American screenwriter, who has written for the films ''Little Miss Sunshine'' (2006), ''Toy Story 3'' (2010), and '' Star Wars: The Force Awakens'' (2015). Arndt won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for ''Littl ...

(''

Toy Story 3 ''Toy Story 3'' is a 2010 American animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios for Walt Disney Pictures. The third installment in the Toy Story (franchise), ''Toy Story'' series, it was directed by Lee Unkrich, the editor ...

'', ''

Little Miss Sunshine ''Little Miss Sunshine'' is a 2006 American tragicomedy road movie, road film directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (in their directorial debut) from a screenplay written by Michael Arndt. The film stars an ensemble cast consisting of G ...

'') was in talks to re-write the script for ''Catching Fire''. On May 24, 2012, the film was renamed ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' and Arndt was confirmed as the new writer of the script. Arndt was paid $400,000 a week for re-writing the script. Producer

Nina Jacobson Nina Jacobson (born September 15, 1965) is an American film executive who, until July 2006, was president of the Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. With Dawn Steel, Gail Berman and Sherry Lansing, she w ...

hired

Scott Frank A. Scott Frank (born March 10, 1960) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and author. Frank has received two Academy Awards, Academy Award nominations for Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Adapted Screenplay for '' ...

to rewrite the script when the film was weeks away from production. Jacobsen described the process of Frank's rewrite as “laying down new train track while conducting the moving train at the same time.” According to sources, the adaptation needed to be done filming by December 2012 to fit Jennifer Lawrence's schedule. When '' X-Men: Days of Future Past'' lost its original director and shooting for the film was delayed till April 2013, Jennifer Lawrence was no longer needed to be filming in January 2013 and the shooting timeframe for ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' was extended to March (including several breaks due to the holidays and awards season). The film featured sequences filmed in the

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...

format.

Casting

In July 2012, it was announced that

would portray Johanna Mason, that

would portray Wiress, and that

would portray Plutarch Heavensbee. Following this, in August 2012, it was announced that

had been cast as Mags. Before Cohen was cast as Mags,

Melissa Leo Melissa Chessington Leo (born September 14, 1960) is an American actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and two Critics' Choice A ...

was considered for the role; she would later said that was disappointed that she didn't get the role.

was cast as Gloss on August 9,

as Finnick Odair on August 22, and

as Beetee on September 7.

Tony Shalhoub Anthony Marc Shalhoub ( ; ; born October 9, 1953) is an American actor. He is known for a variety of roles ranging from comedic to dramatic on stage and screen. He has received several accolades including five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, s ...

was reported to be the frontrunner for the role of Beetee.

Grant Gustin Thomas Grant Gustin (born January 14, 1990) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Barry Allen / The Flash on The CW series ''The Flash'' (2014–2023) as part of the Arrowverse and as Sebastian Smythe on the Fox series ''Gl ...

auditioned for the role of Finnick Odair.

Garrett Hedlund Garrett John Hedlund (born September 3, 1984) is an American actor and musician. His films include ''Troy'' (2004), '' Friday Night Lights'' (2004), '' Four Brothers'' (2005), ''Eragon'' (2006), ''Death Sentence'' (2007), '' Tron: Legacy'' (201 ...

was offered the role, but he passed on it as he was working on ''

On the Road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagoni ...

''.

Taylor Kitsch Taylor Kitsch (born April 8, 1981) is a Canadian actor. He is known for portraying Tim Riggins in the NBC television series '' Friday Night Lights'' (2006–2011). He has also worked in films such as '' X-Men Origins: Wolverine'' (2009), ''Bat ...

and

Armie Hammer Armand Douglas Hammer (born August 28, 1986) is an American actor. He began his acting career with guest appearances in several television series. His first leading role was as Billy Graham in the 2008 film '' Billy: The Early Years'' and Hamme ...

were reported to be the frontrunner for the role of Finnick, with Kitsch later stating that it wasn't going to happen.

Filming

Lawrence, Hutcherson and Hemsworth all dyed their hair for the movie once again. Lawrence went back into archery training in order to get in shape for the role while the supporting cast undertook training in preparation for the arena scenes. Production officially began on September 10, 2012, with shooting concluding for some of the cast on December 21, 2012. After the Christmas break, filming resumed for two weeks in mid January for some of the main cast and was placed on hold for awards season. Principal photography resumed and concluded in March 2013. Shooting first took place in and around metropolitan

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

and then moved to

, to shoot the arena scenes. The cast and crew were on a busy schedule, working 14-hour days and six days a week. In an interview with MTV, Josh Hutcherson confirmed scenes in the film would use IMAX cameras by stating, "They're shooting, I think, all the stuff in the arena is going to be IMAX". Jennifer Lawrence and Liam Hemsworth were in

Ringwood, New Jersey Ringwood is a borough in Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 11,735, a decrease of 493 (−4.0%) from the 2010 census count of 12,228, which in turn reflected a d ...

shooting District 12 scenes involving snow for the beginning of the film on January 31 and February 1. Jennifer Lawrence confirmed that she would fly out to Hawaii on February 25, the day after she won the Academy Award for Best Actress at the

85th Academy Awards The 85th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2012 and took place on February 24, 2013, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, beginning at 5:30 p ...

due to her performance in ''

Silver Linings Playbook ''Silver Linings Playbook'' is a 2012 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by David O. Russell. The film is based on Matthew Quick's 2008 novel '' The Silver Linings Playbook''. It stars Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawre ...

'' to shoot for the final 9 days along with Claflin and Hutcherson. In late March, filming occurred in the

Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to: * Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate ** Universal Pictures, an American film studio ** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex * Various theme parks operat ...

backlot and was kept extremely secretive. Witnesses reported towers and fences on set. None of the main cast were believed to have been on set. Reshoots were scheduled for April 13 in Atlanta. With the base camp set up at Executive Park off North Druid Hills Road, filming also occurred at the Goat Farm Arts Center. Francis Lawrence has estimated an hour of the film would be devoted to Arena scenes, and said that cameras would be mounted to avoid the shaky-cam look from the first film. In an IMAX featurette, Francis Lawrence also confirmed that scenes taking place in the Arena were shot on IMAX cameras to distinguish them from scenes external to the Arena. Ritchson originally shot Gloss' death scene as him getting one of Katniss' arrows to the face upon slitting Wiress' throat, but the filmmakers later decided during post-production that it was "too gruesome", so they edited Katniss' arrow to strike Gloss' chest instead despite Gloss' head moving as initially intended. Approximately 50 minutes of the film's footage was shot in the IMAX format, through the use of three IMAX 15 perf/65mm film cameras.

Costumes

Sarah Burton, creative director at

Alexander McQueen Lee Alexander McQueen (17 March 1969 – 11 February 2010) was a British fashion designer and couturier. He founded his own Alexander McQueen (brand), Alexander McQueen label in 1992 and was chief designer at Givenchy from 1996 to 2001. His ac ...

, gave pieces of McQueen's collection to costume designer Trish Summerville. Summerville collaborated with Indonesian designer Tex Saverio when designing Katniss' wedding dress for the Quarter Quell interviews.

Music

Soundtrack

British singer

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran ( ; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...

recorded three songs for the soundtrack, but Lionsgate declined the offer. On May 14, 2013,

Alexandra Patsavas Alexandra Patsavas (born 1968) is a Grammy and Emmy nominated American music supervision, music supervisor, film producer, producer, & executive producer, executive who has worked on over 100 films and television series, most notably ''The Twilig ...

was listed in the credits as music supervisor, replacing

T Bone Burnett Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American record producer, guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a guitarist in Bob Dylan's band during the 1970s. Burnett has won several Grammy Awards for his work on film sou ...

from the first film.

were announced as the first official artist to be featured on the ''Catching Fire'' soundtrack album, with the song "

", released worldwide on September 6, 2013.

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...

announced that her song, "

We Remain "We Remain" is a song by American singer Christina Aguilera, taken from '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'', the soundtrack to the 2013 American science-fiction adventure film '' The Hunger Games: Catching F ...

", would be part of the official soundtrack of the film. Other artists featured on the soundtrack include

Of Monsters and Men Of Monsters and Men is an Icelandic indie folk/Folk rock, rock band formed in Garðabær in 2010. It consists of lead singer and guitarist Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir, singer and guitarist Ragnar Þórhallsson, Ragnar "Raggi" Þórhallsson, ...

with "Silhouettes", Sia featuring

The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (; born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is best known for adding Pop music, pop, electronic music, electronic and hip-hop stylings ...

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is a co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer; a member of the supergroup LSD (group), ...

with "

Elastic Heart "Elastic Heart" is a song written by Australian singer Sia, featuring Canadian singer the Weeknd and American record producer Diplo, for the soundtrack of '' The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'', a film based on the novel of the same name by S ...

", The National with "Lean", The Weeknd with "Devil May Cry",

Imagine Dragons Imagine Dragons are an American pop rock band formed in 2008, based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The band currently consists of lead singer Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, and bassist Ben McKee. They first gained exposure with the release of ...

with "Who We Are",

Lorde Ella Marija Lani Yelich-O'Connor (born 7 November 1996), known professionally as Lorde ( ), is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. She is known for her unconventional style of pop music and introspective songwriting, and has been referred to ...

with "

Everybody Wants to Rule the World "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is a song by the English pop rock band Tears for Fears from their second studio album ''Songs from the Big Chair'' (1985). It was written by Roland Orzabal, Ian Stanley, and Chris Hughes and produced by Hug ...

The Lumineers The Lumineers are an American alternative folk band based in Denver, Colorado. The founding members are Wesley Schultz (lead vocals, guitar) and Jeremiah Fraites (drums, percussion, piano). Schultz and Fraites began writing and performing to ...

with "Gale Song",

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer, songwriter, and activist. Born in Hereford and raised in Lyonshall, Goulding began writing songs at the age of 15. She released her debut single " Under the Sheets" through ...

with "Mirror",

Patti Smith Patricia Lee Smith (born December 30, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, poet, painter, author, and photographer. Her 1975 debut album '' Horses'' made her an influential member of the New York City-based punk rock movement. Smith has fu ...

with "Capitol Letter", Santigold with "Shooting Arrows at the Sky", Mikky Ekko with "Place for Us", Phantogram with "Lights", and Antony and the Johnsons with "Angel on Fire".

Score

In October 2012, composer

James Newton Howard James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, orchestrator and music producer. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores ...

confirmed that he would return to score the film. The score album was released on November 25, 2013. All songs written and composed by James Newton Howard, except "We're a Team" (co-written by

band members:

Guy Berryman Guy Rupert Berryman (born 12 April 1978) is a Scottish musician, songwriter, producer, businessman and designer. He is best known as the bassist of the rock band Coldplay and electronic supergroup Apparatjik. Raised in Kirkcaldy, he starte ...

Jonny Buckland Jonathan Mark Buckland (born 11 September 1977) is a British musician and songwriter. He is best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Raised in Pantymwyn, he started to play guitar at an early age, taking ins ...

Will Champion William Champion (born 31 July 1978) is an English musician and songwriter. He is best known as the drummer and percussionist of the Rock music, rock band Coldplay. Raised in Southampton, he learned to play numerous instruments during his yout ...

, and

Chris Martin Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He is best known as the vocalist, pianist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Martin went to University Colleg ...

Release

Marketing

On November 16, 2012, the first teaser trailer was released with '' The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2'' and revealed the official logo and tagline for the film. Lionsgate announced a sweepstakes competition where 12 fans would have their name listed in the film's credits. On January 11, 2013, ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' released a 2013 Preview edition of their magazine, with the first look of Lawrence as Katniss and Claflin as Finnick on the cover as well as several stills showcasing scenes from the film. On February 22, both

Hitfix HitFix, or HitFix.com, was an entertainment news website that launched in December 2008 specializing in breaking entertainment news, insider information, and reviews and critiques of film, music, and television. In mid-2010 HitFix crossed the 1,00 ...

and the official Facebook page debuted two viral posters of the Victory Tour featuring

(Katniss) and

(Peeta). On January 28, 2013, CapitolCouture.PN, a promotional site for the film's fashion and culture, opened and could only be unlocked with a passcode. Once in, a picture of a blue chair appeared and told readers to check back on March 4. On March 4, 2013, the site began to release portraits of the various characters. Alongside the announcement of the teaser trailer premiering at the

2013 MTV Movie Awards The 2013 MTV Movie Awards were held on April 14, 2013 at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City, California. The show was hosted by Rebel Wilson. The nominees were announced on March 5. Performers * Rebel Wilson, Skylar Astin, Anna Camp, Esther ...

, Lionsgate revealed a new website calle
TheHungerGamesExplorer
On April 10, the website was updated and fans had to tweet using the hashtag #HungerGamesExplorer to unlock new stills from the movie. A still could be unlocked every day leading up to April 14, 2013, the teaser trailer's release date. The teaser trailer thus debuted at the

on April 14, presented by

, and the trailer was posted on TheHungerGamesExplorer and YouTube after the ceremony. "Beyond Fire" by T.T.L. was played as the trailer music. An exclusive new trailer debuted at

San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...

on July 20, 2013, also being released online on that day.

Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...

released the first TV spot on their Facebook page on October 14, featuring

's song, "

". On October 27, 2013, during the fifth inning of Game 4 of the

2013 World Series The 2013 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2013 Major League Baseball season, 2013 season. The 109th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (A ...

, the final trailer was released. Three days later, on October 30, 2013, a new IMAX poster for the film debuted.

Theatrical

The film premiered at the

theater in

on November 11, 2013. The film was later released on November 22, 2013, in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in conventional and

theaters. The film was also shown in the 4DX format in selected international territories. It features motion-enhanced seating, wind, water sprays, strobe lightning, and scent-based special effects. The film was released in 4,165 theaters in the United States and Canada alone.

Home media

The

Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

release date for the film in the United States was March 7, 2014. The entire ''Hunger Games'' series was released on 4K UHD Blu-ray on November 8, 2016. Actresses

and Stephanie Leigh Schlund, who played Mags and Cashmere in the film, respectively, promoted the DVD and Blu-ray versions of the film with an appearance at the March 7, 2014 midnight release of the product at the

Secaucus, New Jersey Secaucus ( ) is a Town (New Jersey), town in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 22,181, an increase of 5,917 (+36.4%) from the 2010 United St ...

. As of March 16, 2014, Catching Fire has sold 2,073,719 DVDs along with 2,186,430 Blu-ray discs for $35.4 million and $43.8 million, respectively, totaling $79.4 million of revenue within two weeks of release.

Reception

Box office

''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' earned $424.7 million in North America and $440.3 million in other countries for a worldwide total of $865 million. Worldwide, it is the highest-grossing film of ''The Hunger Games'' series, the highest-grossing film distributed by

and the fifth-highest-grossing 2013 film. In North America, ''Catching Fire'' is the 30th-highest-grossing film, the highest-grossing film of ''The Hunger Games'' series, the highest-grossing film distributed by Lionsgate and the highest-grossing 2013 film.

Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb, which itself is owned by Amazon. History Brandon Gray ...

estimates that the film sold more than 50 million tickets in the United States and Canada. It became the first 2-D film since ''

The Dark Knight ''The Dark Knight'' is a 2008 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, from a screenplay co-written with his brother Jonathan. Based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, it is the sequel to ''Batman Begins'' (2005), and the second inst ...

'' (2008), as well as the first film with a female lead since ''

'' (1973), to top the yearly box office. It is also the top-selling film in Fandango history, surpassing previous record-holder ''

Avatar Avatar (, ; ) is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means . It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appearance" is sometimes u ...

''. The film earned $25.3 million during Thursday late-night showings. It topped the box office on its opening day with $71.0 million (including Thursday late-night showings), which is higher than its predecessor's opening-day gross ($67.3 million) and is also the seventh largest single-day and opening-day gross. During its opening weekend, ''The Hunger Games: Catching Fire'' claimed first place with $158.1 million, opening higher than its predecessor ($152.5 million). This was the sixth-highest-grossing opening weekend, the second-highest-grossing opening weekend of 2013 behind ''

Iron Man 3 ''Iron Man 3'' is a 2013 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Iron Man, produced by Marvel Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It is the sequel to ''Iron Man (2008 film), Iron Man'' (2008) an ...

'' ($174.1 million), and the highest-grossing opening weekend in November, breaking the record set by '' The Twilight Saga: New Moon'' ($142.9 million) in 2009. The film held the November weekend record for nine years until it was topped in 2022 by '' Black Panther: Wakanda Forever'' ($181.3 million). It was in first place for two consecutive weekends. The film also broke the following records: the biggest Friday for a film in its second weekend, the largest three-day ($74.2 million) and largest five-day ($109.9 million) Thanksgiving gross. The latter two records would be held until 2019 when they were both surpassed by ''

Frozen II ''Frozen 2'', stylized as ''Frozen II'', is a 2019 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures as the sequel to '' Frozen'' (2013). The film was directed by Chris Buck ...

''. The film achieved the fifth-highest-grossing opening week (Friday-to-Thursday), the third-highest non-opening Wednesday and the fourth-largest second weekend. Outside North America, it is the highest-grossing film of ''The Hunger Games'' series, the highest-grossing film released by Lionsgate and the seventh-highest-grossing 2013 film. On its first weekend, it was only released in Brazil (November 15, 2013), where it grossed $2.4 million on its opening day and $5.26 million for the weekend. On the following Wednesday and Thursday, it opened in 42 more territories, bringing its total to $32 million in a week. The film opened in 63 other territories and earned $138.4 million during the weekend ($146.6 million including its first week in Brazil). Its three largest openings occurred in the UK, Ireland and Malta ($19.8 million), China ($13.0 million) and Germany ($12.9 million). In total earnings, its largest countries are the UK, Ireland and Malta ($55.5 million), Germany ($43.4 million) and Australia ($34.3 million).

Critical response

On review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

the film holds an approval rating of 90% based on 292 reviews, with a rating average of 7.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Smart, smoothly directed, and enriched with a deeper exploration of the franchise's thought-provoking themes, ''Catching Fire'' proves a thoroughly compelling second installment in the ''Hunger Games'' series." It was the highest rated science fiction/fantasy movie of the year on the website.

Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...

assigned the film a weighted average score of 76 out of 100 based on 49 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". According to polls conducted during the opening weekend by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

, audiences gave the film an average rating of "A" on an A+ to F scale. ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' said that the film has received "generally positive reviews" and

CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...

reported that reviews were "overwhelmingly positive" but noted that "an overarching complaint" was that it "runs needlessly long ... and the screenplay and direction do occasionally fall short." ''

'' said the consensus was that the sequel is "a more-confident, more-polished movie that delves deeper into Panem's political conflict". It also reported, "Critics are impressed that awrencecommits to Katniss just as much as she would a complex

David O. Russell David Owen Russell (born August 20, 1958) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. He has earned numerous accolades including two British Academy Film Awards, and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for five Academy Aw ...

character." Writing for ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...

'', Stephanie Zacharek praised

's performance, writing that the actress is "both on fire and in the process of becoming, and it’s magnificent to watch." Peter Travers of ''Rolling Stone'' gave the film 3.5 stars out of four and said, "Pop-culture escapism can be thrilling when dished out by experts. Katniss is a character worth a handful of sequels. And Lawrence lights up the screen. You'll follow her anywhere." He also commended supporting actors Sam Claflin and Jena Malone. Reviewing on Roger Ebert, Roger Ebert's website, Susan Wloszczyna of ''USA Today'' awarded the film three out of four stars, praising the acting of Jeffrey Wright, Amanda Plummer and Jena Malone and referring to the challenges of the arena as "visually intriguing." Wloszczyna writes: "...the one truly fresh invention—and the one that matters most—is Katniss herself. With each on-screen chapter, the poor girl from District 12 continues to fulfill her destiny as an inspiration and a rebel fighter." Ian Nathan of ''Empire (film magazine), Empire'' gave the film 4 stars out of 5 and noted that it was even better than the first film. He praised director Lawrence for "taking a more muscular approach" and "sensibly downplaying" the love triangle, noting that "neither [Peeta nor Gale], quite frankly, are fit to lay a pinky on [Katniss'] quiver". One fault he did find was in Philip Seymour Hoffman's "surprisingly ineffective performance". A negative review came from Sophie Monks Kaufman of ''Little White Lies (magazine), Little White Lies'', who praised Lawrence's performance but criticized the "dilution of the ingredients that made ''The Hunger Games'' so gripping." She also found fault with the "lumbering" plot, the "hamminess" of President Snow and Plutarch Heavensbee and the "lackluster and unconvincing script culled from a dramatically difficult book". David Denby of ''The New Yorker'' argued that the premise "doesn't make a lot of sense". He praised the "impressive" first act and Jennifer Lawrence, for "project[ing] the kind of strength that Katharine Hepburn had when she was young." Denby found the second act "attenuated and rhythmless" and criticised the "incoherent" finale that "will send the audience scurrying back to the book to find out what’s supposed to be going on". In July 2025, it was one of the films voted for the "Readers' Choice" edition of ''The New York Times'' list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century," finishing at number 256.

Accolades

Sequels

In July 2012,

announced that two films based on the final book in ''The Hunger Games'' trilogy, ''

'', were scheduled to be released. The first film, '' The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1'', was released on November 21, 2014, while the second film, ''The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2'', was released on November 20, 2015. Principal photography on the two-part film began on September 23, 2013, in

and concluded on June 20, 2014, in Berlin, Germany.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The 2013 films 2013 action films 2013 science fiction films 2010s survival films Teen action films American science fiction action films American science fiction drama films American science fiction thriller films American survival films The Hunger Games (film series), 2 2010s English-language films American sequel films American dystopian films Films scored by James Newton Howard Films directed by Francis Lawrence Films set in North America Films shot in Atlanta Films shot in Georgia (U.S. state) Films shot in Hawaii Films shot in New Jersey IMAX films Lionsgate films Jungle adventure films Teen adventure films Films with screenplays by Michael Arndt Films with screenplays by Simon Beaufoy 2013 drama films Films produced by Jon Kilik 2010s American films English-language science fiction films English-language action films English-language adventure films Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award–winning films Teen Choice Award winning films