Hunger Games franchise director Francis Lawrence described protagonist Katniss Everdeen (played by Jennifer Lawrence) as 'asexual' in a recent interview.
Francis Lawrence's fourth directorial effort within the storied series is about to hit theater screens in the upcoming prequel, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.
This latest film will tackle a whole new set of characters, starring Rachel Zegler as the main character, Lucy Gray Baird.
Zegler's Lucy will seemingly be a vast departure from Jennifer Lawrence's franchise figurehead, who starred in all four of the previous Hunger Games films.
Katniss Described as 'Asexual'
While speaking about the upcoming Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, director Francis Lawerence said that Jennifer Lawrence's Katniss Everdeen was almost "asexual" when compared to the protagonist of the upcoming film.
Describing Rachel Zegler's character in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes to Empire, Lawrence said she is the anti-Katniss. He called Katniss an "introvert and a survivor," adding, "You could almost say [she was] asexual:"
“Katniss was an introvert and a survivor. She was quite quiet and stoic, you could almost say [she was] asexual. Lucy Gray is the opposite. She wears her sexuality on her sleeve, [and] she really is a performer.”
Continuing, Lawrence revealed that while Katniss was a warrior with a bow and arrow, Zegler's Lucy Gray Baird "knows how to play crowds and manipulate people:"
“She loves crowds. She knows how to play crowds and manipulate people.”
How Katniss Differs From New Hunger Games Star
After nearly a decade since the franchise was last heard from, the Hunger Games is back on the big screen, but it will be led by a completely new star playing a different kind of character.
Instead of Jennifer Lawerance's "quiet and stoic" survivor, Rachel Zegler's Lucy will be a bit of a pivot for fans of the series.
Katniss was always the warrior who had to adjust to the world of playing politics of the Hunger Games and the Capital. Lucy will be exactly the opposite it seems.
This District 12 tribute has the people skills, and - as Francis Lawrence described - "wear[ing] her sexuality on her sleeve," using it to her advantage.
It is just the physical survival skills that will need to be taught to the charismatic Lucy if she has any chance of getting out of the Hunger Games arena alive.
That is not to say Katniss did not acquire people skills over her time in the spotlight, becoming a symbol of the people over time, but Zegler's Lucy will have that primed and ready from the get-go it seems.
The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is set to come to theaters on November 17.
