The Hunger Games sequel loses its director: A major blow?

Fans of Gary Ross' blockbuster adaptation lament that the director won't be back for the franchise's second installment, Catching Fire

Director Gary Ross
(Image credit: Lionsgate/Murray Close)

Gary Ross did not survive The Hunger Games. The director, who earned borderline raves for his faithful film adaptation of Suzanne Collins' hit novel, is abandoning the franchise. "I have decided not to direct Catching Fire," the second installment of the series, Ross said in a statement. "I simply don't have the time I need to write and prep the movie I would have wanted to make because of the fixed and tight production schedule." This leaves Catching Fire — in which Katniss Everdeen deals with fallout after defying a corrupt dystopian government during a lethal reality-TV competition — without a director just three and a half months before shooting is set to begin. (The film will be released Nov. 22, 2013.) How big of a blow is the loss of Ross to the Hunger Games franchise?

It's terrible news: Ross' exit is even more critical than some may realize, says Drew McWeeny at HitFix. He didn't just direct The Hunger Games. He sat down with Suzanne Collins to do the final pass on the script, putting "his fingerprints all over that first film." He also assembled the pitch-perfect cast, and drew from Jennifer Lawrence a steely lead performance as Katniss. This is the second time Lionsgate has parted ways with a director who launched a blockbuster franchise (see Twilight). Why would anyone want to sign on with such a seemingly problematic studio?

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