Why Jennifer Lawrence refused to lose weight for her breakout role in ‘The Hunger Games’

Jennifer Lawrence is opening up about one of the most important roles in her career, and her experience in the film industry, during a recent conversation with Viola Davis for Variety’s Actors on Actors.

The two actresses talked about the way Hollywood sees body image, revealing that for her breakout role as Katniss in ‘The Hunger Games’ she was asked to lose weight, to which she immediately refused.

The 32-year-old star explained that she did not want to implement an extreme diet for the role, as she was worried about the effect this would have on young kids watching the character on the big screen.

“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,” she said, adding that she “can’t let that seep into my brain either.”

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This is not the first time Jennifer shares the importance of thinking about the influence of her roles, and the way some pre-production decisions can benefit young viewers.

“I do exercise! But I don’t diet,” the actress previously said during an interview with Glamour. “You can’t work when you’re hungry, you know?”

She also explained to BBC in 2013 that her character was supposed to be “incredibly thin,” as Katniss was in a difficult situation in the story, about to fight for District 12. However, she decided to change that perspective. “We have the ability to control this image that young girls are going to be seeing,” she said at the time.