Forget trying to choose between vampires and werewolves.
Forget dark wizards and school bullies.
Without going too far into spoiler territory: its pretty brutal.
And its also pretty awesome.
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(Beware:this interview may contain somespoilersif you havent read the book!)
Ive seen a little bit of that already so Im sure its going to happen.
So I think that would be my big push for why people should be Team Peeta.
From what weve seen so far, it looks like the films going to be very brutal.
Is it fair to say that there wont be any sugar-coating, and it will be quite violent?
It has to be.
I mean, thats part of the essence of the book, capturing how brutal it is.
One of the main points of the story is that these kids children!
are forced to be in these situations.
I feel like Id be alright.
I feel like I might have a good chance at surviving.
Even if you had to kill your fellow Tributes?
Thats what my downfall would be.
If it came down to a fight between you and Jennifer Lawrence, who would win?
So I think that she would probably win on that factor alone.
What was the hardest thing you filmed were there any particular stunts you got involved with?
It was long we shot it at night, and it was like a three-night shoot.
We had this fight choreographed, and it was so hot and humid, we were sweating so much…
It was really physically challenging.
Lets go get some lunch!
If we came round to your house for dinner, what would you cook for us?
I can actually bake.
My dessert would be an apple pie I make a really good French apple pie with crumbles on top.
But Im a grill kind of guy when it comes to the main course.
Youve said that you wanted to do a film in every genre whats left to tick off your list?
The thing is, there are so many sub-genres…
I think maybe Im getting pretty good at covering all the genres.
Im almost done acting!
Did you read any of the Hunger Games books before you got the script?
What kinds of books do you normally read?
And, honestly, I read the whole series in a week; I couldnt put it down.
How involved was Suzanne Collins in making the film?
She was very involved.
It was great, actually!
She was in the first audition that I had, which was mildly traumatising!
But she was great.
She was very involved in the process.
So it wasnt a sacrosanct thing, but something more pliable?
Did Suzanne Collins give you any particular pointers for playing Peeta?
It was kind of all in the books.
Everything about Peeta, I believe in 100 per cent, so there wasnt much help that I needed.
Have you ever been caught in a love triangle?
How do you cope with those situations?
Honesty is the most important thing in most relationships, and communication, and being forthcoming.
And then just kind of figure it out from there.
Do you get embarrassed?
Do you point it out to people or do you pull a hoodie over your head and run?
I pull a hoodie over my head and run!
The most embarrassing part is that my friends are like look what I have!
and its like, oh, God, c’mon dont do this to me!
I mean, its cool.
Are many of your friends involved in the industry?
When you were filmingThe Hunger Games,did fans show up on location at all?
Lionsgate were so top-secret about all the locations.
So they have their ways, they can find the locations.
I mean, it is and it isnt.
Speaking of fans, whats the nicest thing a fan has done for you?
Its one of the nicest things anyones ever given me as a fan.
Like, out of nowhere, for free!
I was like oh my God, thank you!
I feel like I should pay you for this.
It was pretty cool.
I did not think about that before I signed on.
Its like… oh, wow, yeah, theres that, too, isnt there?
But its exciting, too, to have that kind of support from fans.
Do you feel pressure that kids look up to you to be a role model?
Its kind of an honour to be in that position.
Have you treated yourself to anything special out of these fantastic wage packets youre getting?
Jennifer Lawrence is singing Rues Lullaby in the film hows her singing voice?
I havent seen it!
I havent seen the movie and I wasnt there when they shot that.
I think she did a great job.
Were you offered the chance to sing Safe And Sound?
I cannot sing at all.
Im quite happy that that never arose.
Whats Gary Ross like as a director?
Hes a brilliant human being, an amazing director and an incredible writer.
Can you remember when you first realised you wanted to be an actor?
Were you a dreadful little show-off as a kid?
I think I probably was!
Honestly I dreaded doing school plays.
I hated them so much.
Not because I had stage fright, I hated them because I thought that the subjects were cheesy.
There were never any real performances, and that always made me mad.
So the teacher said, okay, fine.
So I went up there, like watermelon watermelon watermelon, all angry and pissed off.
Afterwards my grandma comes up to me and goes Were you saying watermelon over and over again?
What was the first performance you gave that you thought yeah, I could do this?
Probably my first movie.
and it was just like I love this.
I didnt really think oh Im good at this.
And they have, thankfully.
What was your favourite scene to film?
Probably the scenes between Katniss and Peeta in the cave.
Even as a reader, that was my favourite part to read, it was like Yes!
He finally said it!
So as an actor, it was kind of that same moment.
Josh Hutcherson, thank you very much.
