Who Should Play Katniss Everdeen?

That’s the question on the lips of fans of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins.  According to a recent article on The Movie Pool, Lionsgate films has A-listed 3 girls to play the part of Katniss Everdeen in the upcoming The Hunger Games film, although who will actually play her has not been determined.  The three young women who have been favored for the role are Hailee Steinfeld, Jennifer Lawrence, and Abigail Breslin.

Hailee Steinfeld stands out as the tough as nails, Mattie Ross from the Coen Brothers’ recent reboot of True Grit.  She looks the part, and certainly has proven herself to be much more than just a teen actor.  In True Grit (which is a FANTASTIC film), she is sharp, witty, and knows how to get what she wants.  Hailee has proven that she can handle cutting dialog and knows how to really make what she says “stick,” like Katniss does.  I could definitely see her kicking butt and taking names as Katniss.  She’s my top choice.

Next up is Jennifer Lawrence, Academy Award nominee for Winter’s Bone.  I’ve not seen any of her films, however, according to her page at IMDB.com, she’s playing Mystique/Raven Darkholme in the upcoming X-Men: First Class film, of which I am ELATED to see.  If she’s got the role of Mystique, that tells me she is no pushover.  Being a long-time X-Men aficionado, I can’t imagine anyone wimpy playing Mystique, who by the way, has a kid with a demon (No, seriously.  Nightcrawler’s dad is an emissary of Satan).  It looks like Jennifer could prove to be a tough contender for the part as well.  Hailee is still my favorite, but I’m not going to count Ms. Lawrence out yet.

Last on the list is Abigail Breslin.  You may remember her as a very young girl as Bo in M. Night Shyamalan’s Signs, my personal favorite of his films, or as Little Rock in the comedic, yet gruesome Zombieland.  Looking at her resumé on IMDB.com, Breslin has played a variety of roles anywhere from the cutesy, Kit Kittredge: An American Girl to bigger roles and leads in My Sister’s Keeper and Little Miss Sunshine.  Of the three ladies at the front to play Katniss, Breslin has the most diverse resumé.  However, she may look a bit too young for the part, and gosh, she’s so darn cute, it’s a bit too difficult for me to imagine her as Katniss.  Still, with her ability to play across a variety of roles, I won’t be too surprised if she lands the role either.  After all, if she can slash up the undead in Zombieland, she could probably do the same in the arena of Panem.

So friends, what do you think?  Who should play the role of one of the toughest, darkest, and most tragic heroines of all modern literature?  I’m going to vote for Steinfeld, but I will not be too disappointed if these other ladies are cast.  They seem to have proven that they have what it takes to play the role of Katniss.  Vote in the poll and explain your choice in the comments.

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