16 Behind-The-Scenes Secrets From The Hunger Games Franchise Only True Fans Will Know About

Even before The Hunger Games was turned into one of the most successful film franchises ever, fans were pouring over the pages of the book series the films stemmed from, penned by author Suzanne Collins.With its strong message of female empowerment and it bold narrative about fighting for survival, it's no wonder that those who loved the book eagerly anticipated the arrival of the film adaptations. Starring Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen, along with Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, and many other huge names in Hollywood, The Hunger Games movies became smash hits worldwide.

However, even if you're the biggest fan of The Hunger Games franchise, there's probably a lot that even the most devoted followers don't know about the making of the movies. From accidents, to pranks, to instigating international riots, The Hunger Games was massively influential and a lot went on behind the scenes that few people are probably aware of. So get ready to do your three finger salute in honor of this fantastic series, as we take you into the secret world of The Hunger Games, unveiling some pretty surprising information about this beloved film franchise.

16 Jennifer Lawrence Hesitated Over Becoming Katniss

Jennifer Lawrence wasn't actually the only actress being considered for the role of Katniss Everdeen. Hailee Steinfeld, Shailene Woodley, and Abigail Breslin were also in talks to become the now iconic character. However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, once director Gary Ross saw Lawrence in her Oscar-nominated part in Winter's Bone, he knew she'd be perfect to play Katniss. However, even after she was asked to star in The Hunger Games, Lawrence was hesitant to accept. She didn't want to be pigeonholed into a pop-culture franchise that would hurt the respect she'd earned for herself as a serious actress, and dreaded the fate that had happened to the actors in Twilight. After speaking with her mom though, and after waiting three days to make her final decision, Jennifer Lawrence finally said yes, and The Hunger Games franchise we know and love was on its way.

15 Jennifer Lawrence Almost Got In A Huge Accident While Filming

Jennifer Lawrence had to undertake a lot of physically challenging stunts and skills in the movies, and anyone who has watched The Hunger Games movies knows she had a lot of running and jumping to do. What you may not know though is that during the filming of the first The Hunger Games film, JLaw had a terrible accident that could have cost her her life. The Hollywood Reporter revealed that on the last day of her six-week training schedule, Jennifer Lawrence had to keep running into a wall as part of one of the stunts. However, one of the times she did this, she ran at the wall but didn't get her foot up it, instead of crashing into it stomach-first. So hard and fast was the hit that her trainer thought she'd burst her spleen. Jennifer had to have a CAT scan and all sorts of tests done, and despite the awful bruising and trauma of the accident, she was eventually ok to keep filming.

14 Katniss Nearly Caused Real Life Riots

In November 2015, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2 was released worldwide, but two countries decided to delay the film's release: China and Thailand. As noted by The Washington Post, apparently there were fears in these countries that Katniss Everdeen's rebellious antics would inspire people to rise up against their oppressors and instigate real riots. Both China and Thailand have histories of governmental oppression on their people, so there was a real concern within these areas that people would become inspired by the movie to rebel against the governmental regimes. Certain cinemas in Bangkok even canceled all screening of the film and protesters were arrested for doing the three-fingered salute we so famously associated with Katniss and The Hunger Games and which symbolizes solidarity and resistance in the face of corruption.

13 There Was A Swear Jar On Set… Specifically For JLaw

Everybody knows that Jennifer Lawrence has a proclivity for using some pretty fowl language and her tendency for swearing like a sailor has been made known in interviews, on red carpets, and in press appearances alike. So it may not come as that much of a surprise to learn that the Oscar-winning actress had a swear jar made for her on the set of The Hunger Games movies. Apparently, according to The Sun, one of the co-stars on the film said: “Jen has the filthiest mouth.” Although JLaw kept the jar filled to its rim, paying over for every bad word and expletive she uttered, it didn't stop her from swearing. Clearly messing up a take or fooling around behind the scenes caused Jen to go a bit over-the-top with the rude language, and we do wonder how much money the jar made in the end, and what that cash went towards.

12 Jennifer Lawrence Hated Singing Her Famous Song

There's no denying Jennifer Lawrence is a great actress. We've seen her take on a host of different roles, and her versatility seems to have no bounds. From action movies to rom-coms, Jen seems to be able to do it all with flair. But, while we've grown accustomed to the actress wowing us with her acting talent, we were all surprised to learn that she could sing too - and well! In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 1, Katniss sings an a cappella song called “The Hanging Tree”, and it was incredible to all those watching the film to see how well Jennifer Lawrence delivered the tune. It even became a hit on the radio. The funny bit? Jennifer Lawrence hated having to sing it and she loathed the song too. Jen admitted to TV talk show host David Letterman that singing in front of people is one of her biggest fears, and she can't re-watch the scene where she sings without covering her ears.

11 There Was A Lot of Improvising In The Films

Although The Hunger Games may be about survival and about watching Katniss Everdeen kick some serious butt, there's also the romantic plotlines that got a lot of us invested in the films. And, while the main love story might be the triangle between Katniss, Peeta, and Gale, there was definitely another romantic storyline that got us all pretty invested in it: the one between Haymitch and Effie. In The Hunger Games: Mockingjay-Part 2, Haymitch kisses Effie, but apparently, this wasn't planned. According to Entertainment Tonight, the smooch was completely improvised by Woody Harrelson. He told ET: “I have a crush on Elizabeth Banks, I'm not going to lie”. He further added: “She didn't know I was even going to do it, and I just kissed her. She's such a pro.”

10 There Was A Lot Of Pranking On Set

With such charismatic fun actors involved in The Hunger Games movies, it shouldn't be a surprise that there was a lot of pranking going on. Jennifer Lawrence is known for her goofy attitude and she loves a good prank. She admitted that before doing kissing scenes with her male co-stars Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth, she wouldn't hold back from eating stinky foods like tuna, mustard, and garlic. In an interview with Jimmy Fallon, Hemsworth said: “If we had a kissing scene, she would make a point of eating garlic or tuna fish or something that was disgusting." But Jen wasn't the only one doing the pranking. Apparently, Josh Hutcherson was a pretty big prankster too. Jennifer Lawrence said he once put a dummy of a swollen, dead tribute in her trailer's bathroom. It almost scared her to death!

9 Jena Malone Had An Embarrassing Naked Moment

In Catching Fire, Jena Malone's character Johanna Mason gets undressed in an elevator in front of Katniss and Peeta in order to psyche them out and unnerve them. This scene was actually filmed in a real glass elevator in a hotel in Atlanta on the 49th floor, but the hotel hadn't shut down for filming, so there were real guests staying there and staff working their normal jobs. During one of the takes of shooting this scene in which Malone strips off, the elevator doors actually opened while Malone was still in the buff. Talk about a shock for everyone! Obviously, Malone wasn't expecting for a stranger to get a peek of her literally in the flesh, but we're sure whoever that man was who got that sneak peek had a very good day after that.

8 Bears? Burning Heat? The Cast Faced A Lot On Set

We've all heard of infamous movie sets where the conditions were rough. Who can forget the stories surrounding the filming of Titanic where Kate Winslet and Leo Dicaprio had to stay in freezing water for hours on end? But one thing Kate and Jack didn't have to deal with were bears. That's right, bears. According to The Hollywood Reporter, there were around 300 real bears living in the forest where they were filming the first Hunger Games movie, and not only that but the cast also had the challenge of acting in over 100-degree heat and rain. Not exactly the glamorous Hollywood life, is it? Despite these hostile conditions though, the cast remained upbeat and positive about the whole experience. Maybe that's because they avoided getting mauled by one of those bears…

7 Jennifer Lawrence Almost Lost Her Hearing Permanently

As with a lot of action-packed movies, there are sure to be a few accidents along the way while filming. But for The Hunger Games films, there seemed to be quite a few mishaps that occurred, and many unfortunately happened to leading lady Jennifer Lawrence. While filming Catching Fire, JLaw had to do a scene in the water. As she dove in the water, a jet unexpectedly blasts her in the ear, and she was left partially deaf for almost an entire week. She ended up with a punctured eardrum and it eventually got infected. The hearing in her one ear didn't return for six days and it actually didn't fully go back to normal until a few months later. Thank goodness it did though, as no film is worth losing your hearing over.

6 Liam Hemsworth Threatened To Burn His House Down

We all know actors have a flair for the being dramatic (hey, it's their job after all), but we have to say, even we think Liam Hemsworth was being just a tad over the top about getting a part in The Hunger Games franchise. According to Entertainment Weekly, Hemsworth was so desperate to play the role of Gale in the movies, that he told his manager and agents that he would burn his own house down if he didn't get the part. Talk about a drama queen, right? Well, luckily for Hemsworth and his local fire department, he was indeed given the role of Gale and we were all thrilled to get to see the hunky Australian actor shine in all his rugged glory on the big screen.

5 The Make-Up Was A Lot To Deal With

When watching The Hunger Games movies, it's hard not to be impressed by the elaborate costumes and make-up the actors have on. Part of the films' aesthetic is a futuristic vibe, and as you might imagine, getting this right was incredibly time-consuming and pretty exhausting for the actors having to sit through hours of make-up. Stanley Tucci, who plays Caesar Flickerman, had to act while sporting layers upon layers of fake tan and massive eyebrows, and Elizabeth Banks had to endure wearing huge bejeweled nails which meant she couldn't even use the bathroom or remove her own clothes without someone helping her out. Apparently, there were more than 35 makeup artists working full time on the main characters' looks and the 500 extras. That's a lot of concealer and bronzer going around!

4 Jennifer Lawrence Got Rough With Josh Hutcherson

We all know the high stakes that were involved in The Hunger Games movies. The tributes had to battle it out against each other, often using violent and ruthless tactics. However, while we all know that the characters had to battle it out against each other on screen, we didn't realize there was real-life violence happening on set behind the scenes. Ok, maybe not violence, but certainly some accidental attacks! Apparently, according to Hollywood Life, when Josh Hutcherson and Jennifer Lawrence were goofing around between takes while filming, JLaw told Josh she bet she could do a high kick over his head. However, when she tried, she actually ended up kicking him in the head, giving him a concussion. Ouch! We reckon Josh started to think twice before he took on another bet from Jen after that!

3 The Training For The Film Was Brutal

Both leading men Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson had to undergo a grueling training regime in order to get in proper shape for their roles in The Hunger Games movies. Part of this exercise schedule included training with an ex-Navy SEAL who made them do exhausting tasks like flipping tires in a parking lot and slamming baseball bats into body bags. Both guys had to stack on the pounds and bulk up their muscles, so it was a protein-heavy diet for both of them during the period leading up to the films and during them. Clearly becoming Peeta and Gale was no joke, and watching the movies, it's evident that all the hard work paid off as the two men looked to be in fantastic shape.

2 Woody Harrelson Ditched Filming For A Lorde Concert

Much of The Hunger Games was filmed in Berlin, and the cast and crew reportedly had an amazing time filming in this great, historic city. However, while some of the cast members were very much in the zone filming and keeping to their strict acting schedule, others took a little bit more of a casual approach to the job at hand. According to MTV, Woody Harrelson found out that Lorde was performing at a concert venue not too far from where they were filming and decided to go along to see the singer perform, and because of it, was late for filming! Lawrence also wanted to go to the concert but resisted as she knew she needed to be on set at the time it was happening. Clearly, that didn't keep Woody from going!

1 There's Meaning Behind Katniss' Name

Katniss is a beautiful yet very unusual name, and many people probably only ever heard of it as a first name when watching The Hunger Games movies. And while it's a gorgeous name in and of itself, there's actually a reason Jennifer Lawrence's character was called it. Katniss as a name is very much linked to nature, just like the girl herself. The name comes from a plant of the genus Sagitaria, and is also known as “arrowhead”, which is obviously fitting since the character Katniss is incredible at archery and knows how to use her bow and arrow better than anyone else. Funnily enough, according to Time magazine, after the first Hunger Games movie was released, records showed that an increasing amount of babies were being called Katniss. Clearly JLaw's character started a naming trend.

Sources: moviesseum.com, hollywoodreporter.com, mtv.com, thesun.co.uk, listverse.com, etonline.com, seventeen.com, usatoday.com, screencrush.com, ew.com, buzzfeed.com, popworkouts.com, time.com, hollywoodlife.com