Jennifer Lawrence says she was pressured to lose weight by The Hunger Games producers

The original The Hunger Games books are arguably one of the most popular pieces of fiction ever to be released.

As of 2014, the original trilogy of books had sold more than 65 million copies in just the US alone.

So for Jennifer Lawrence, it must have been the honour of her life to star in the movie adaptations - and she does admit that - but there were a few problems along the way.

Lawrence was casted as the female lead playing main protagonist Katniss Everdeen in the four film adaptations of the books.

The American actor was joined on set by Woody Harrelson, Lenny Kravitz, Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Banks and Liam Hemsworth, amongst others.

Lionsgate/ FlixPix / Alamy Stock Photo

The first film was directed by Gary Ross, with Francis Lawrence taking over the role for the other three.

Despite landing the lead role, Lawrence admitted in a sit-down chat on Variety's 'Actors on Actors' series with Viola Davis that she was pressured to lose weight.

In the segment where famous actors interview each other, Lawrence told Davis: "In Hunger Games, it was an awesome responsibility. Those books were huge, and I knew that the audience was children.

"I remember the biggest conversation was, ‘How much weight are you going to lose?'"

She continued: "Along with me being young and growing and not able to be on a diet, I don’t know if I want all of the girls who are going to dress up as Katniss to feel like they can’t because they’re not a certain weight.

"And I can’t let that seep into my brain either."

Lawrence then went on to speak about achieving the lead role in The Hunger Games, suggesting that no woman had been put as lead in an action film before.

PA Images / Alamy Stock Photo

Though, you could argue that is not exactly true, as the likes of Angelina Jolie was portraying Lara Croft in Tomb Raider in film from 2001.

Anyway, Lawrence said: "I remember when I was doing Hunger Games, nobody had ever put a woman in the lead of an action movie because it wouldn’t work — because we were told girls and boys can both identify with a male lead, but boys cannot identify with a female lead.

"And it just makes me so happy every single time I see a movie come out that just blows through every one of those beliefs, and proves that it is just a lie to keep certain people out of the movies — to keep certain people in the same positions that they’ve always been in."

Topics: TV And Film, Celebrity

Callum Jones