The Hunger Games Catching Fire Movie: Director Francis Lawrence Talk Katniss/Peeta/Gale Love Triangle, Improved CGI, Famous Actors

The Hunger Games movie in 2012 kicked off what is sure to be a blockbuster movie franchise. Gary Ross directed the original film, but Francis Lawrence has taken over for the sequels The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2.

And with a new director comes a new direction, in some respects, for the franchise. Lawrence (no relation to Oscar-winning actress Jennifer) will no doubt bring some of his own touches to the films that will differ from Ross' movie, and he addressed some of those changes in an interview with New York Magazine.

For starters, Lawrence said he wanted to bring the Katniss/Peeta/Gale love triangle to the forefront more than in the first Hunger Games movie.

"The first film skimped a little on showing us the strategy behind the Katniss-Peeta love story. 

I felt the same. I felt the love story in general was, um, a bit buried in the first one. I wanted to bring the love story to the surface. And when I say love story, I mean the triangle."

The love triangle plays a major role throughout the books, although it is not the primary focus. Katniss displays her affection for both Peeta and Gale multiple times, and those instances occur more frequently in the final two books than they did in the first.

Next, Lawrence addressed the numerous big-name actors that the franchise has attracted, including Philip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch Heavensbee and Julianne Moore as President Alma Coin:

"You have all these pedigree actors coming in, from Philip Seymour Hoffman in Catching Fire to Julianne Moore in Mockingjay. You could have had no-name actors, and the fans would have accepted that.

If you can have Philip Seymour Hoffman, get Philip Seymour Hoffman! And he loved the books, so he signed on. Same with Jeffrey Wright. Same with Julianne. If you can just get those amazing actors, then that's 80 percent of my job."

Finally, Lawrence said that he did not use the shaky cam that Ross used multiple times in the first movie. He added that the CGI effects are "phenomenal" in Catching Fire and specifically referenced the monkey-mutt attack scene as an example.