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Throwback: When Austin Butler Revealed He Auditioned For Peeta Role In The Hunger Games
Austin Butler revealed he auditioned for Peeta in The Hunger Games but didn't get it. The franchise continues with a prequel and an upcoming film based on Suzanne Collins' new novel.
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Austin Butler auditioned for Peeta Mellark in The Hunger Games
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Lionsgate announced a new Hunger Games film
Perhaps The Hunger Games cast could have been slightly different. In a recent Buzzfeed interview with Jodie Comer, Austin Butler revealed that he had tried out for a role in the popular film franchise but was not successful. “I auditioned for The Hunger Games and I didn’t get it at all,” Butler shared, adding that he doesn’t even remember “getting a call back.”
He disclosed that he tried his luck for Peeta Mellark’s role which is the male tribute from District 12 in the 74th annual Hunger Games along with Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence. “I don’t even think I got a call back; what’s the character, Peeta?”
“Josh Hutcherson got that, he’s great,” Butler added. Hutcherson, Lawrence, and Liam Hemsworth became global stars through their roles in the franchise. Jodie Comer also shared her audition experience saying she had an audition for Mamma Mia! around the same time as Killing Eve.
Reflecting on The Hunger Games audition process, director Gary Ross told The Hollywood Reporter that he had a clear idea of who he wanted before the auditions, but the studio wanted everyone to read due to the franchise's size, which he found acceptable and even enjoyable.
He also added that Jennifer Lawrence impressed everyone, Josh Hutcherson was perfect for his role, and he didn't realize Liam Hemsworth wasn't American until after their reading. He felt that all the actors were great and making the final decisions was easy for him.
The Hunger Games series last movie came out in 2015. However, this saga is far from over. A prequel called The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes was released by Lionsgate last year. Its stars were Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler, who played the early years of Coriolanus Snow before Donald Sutherland portrayed him as Panem’s tyrannical president.
Lionsgate announced earlier this month that there will be another Hunger Games movie titled The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. It is set 24 years before The Hunger Games novel by Suzanne Collins and features Katniss Everdeen as a young girl living in District 12 with her mother and sister Primrose.
There is supposed to be one reaping per district in the Capitol once every year; however, this time it is timed to take place just before the reaping of the 50th Hunger Games or Second Quarter Quell that Haymitch Abernathy won when portrayed by Woody Harrelson in its original adaptations.
“The Second Quarter Quell is legendary and looms large over the history of the Games, even into the time of Katniss Everdeen a quarter-century later,” said Adam Fogelson, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group head. “Like fans around the globe, we are eagerly anticipating this exciting return to Panem.”
Francis Lawrence is near a deal to direct an adaptation with Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson’s Color Force banner producing it. Sunrise on the Reaping will be published by Scholastic on March 18, 2025; and Lionsgate has scheduled a theater release for November 20, 2026.
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