IndieWire: Gary Ross will not return to direct ‘Catching Fire’

By Andrew Sims (@Sims) at 11:41 am, April 6, 2012

Some shocking news to start your weekend: One entertainment site is reporting Gary Ross has formally notified Lionsgate/Summit that he won’t return to direct Catching Fire.

IndieWire reports:

The Playlist has learned that Gary Ross has officially exited the franchise and will not direct the sequel, formally giving Lionsgate and Summit his notice earlier this week, that he will not be coming back.

We had told you earlier this week that while negotiations were “tense,” insiders believed he would likely return.

Ross had also recently spoken at length about his ideas for Catching Fire, again suggesting good news.

Lionsgate has not yet commented on the news, so we’ll update you if/when an official announcement is made.

View the latest articles in: The Hunger Games

http://www.facebook.com/markjohnsokol Mark John Sokol

Well this sucks
http://twitter.com/vonchambers Devon Chambers

This is truly the best case scenario for the next movie. The thing critics panned the most was the camera work and that completely falls on Gary Ross’s shoulders. It was above and beyond nauseating to watch at times and I’m really happy he is leaving the series. Plus I always believe each book in a series should have its own director – they feel different when you read them, they should look different when you watch them. great news
- http://jimmypautz.com Jimmy Pautz
  
  I personally thought his approach really worked. The camera work made the film more engaging, more first person.
  - http://twitter.com/vonchambers Devon Chambers
    
    it made is frustrating, he isn’t paul greengrass … shaky cam works only just barely and it has to be really well done.
    - Natelee98
      
      You have to remember, the critics did hate the shaky cam, but they loved almost everything else, so should you get rid of someone that did almost everything right, but just got 1 thing wrong?
  - http://twitter.com/taylie27 Taylore Thompson
    
    I completely agree I absolutely loved it
  - Eoin
    
    I’ll second that.
  - http://twitter.com/melissakayt Melissa Thompson
    
    I agree. I liked the camera work. I guess I’ve just been lucky that camera shake doesn’t bother me? I’ve never even noticed it before.
- keshi
  
  I’m watching the movie of my favorite book, and the camera shakes make me physically ill. How can you enjoy a movie if it’s making you feel sick? This give me a lot of hope for being able to watch the next movie motion sickness free!
  - Josh
    
    How can it make you ill? Stop over exaggerating. It wasn’t as crazy as people make it seem.
    - Laura
      
      “How can it make you ill?”
      
      Are you being obtuse on purpose? Motion sickness tolerance is relative to the person – what makes someone ill may not do the same for another. Count yourself lucky that your tolerance is higher than keshi’s.
  - Hehedied
    
    I agree, the acting was great but…. You can’t see crap on the action scenes, catching fire deserves a better director.
- Liderc
  
  Totally agree. Everything I had a problem with was related to how he directed the film. If they can get a great director for the 2nd film I think they’ll make a movie that not just the fans of the books can enjoy.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Andrew-Kinkead/759877420 Andrew Kinkead

This is horrible, its gonna be just like Harry Potter where now everything will change… Panem will look different just as Hogwarts did in every movie…. great this sucks.
- Lavender
  
  They used the same sets for Harry Potter, what are you saying?
  - Arial_29
    
    No Hogwarts did change. Hagrids house was place differently after the seconded movie, the kids wore regular clothes more then there uniforms. It all changed. Like the Twilight movies, I know no one wants to compare movies but I’m just talking how each director changed things, like the hair.
    - http://www.eigakanthemovietheater.blogspot.com Jenny Leigh
      
      But it was all a gradual change, and not really a sudden one.
      - http://twitter.com/Andrew_ww Andrew W
        
        But they should have created the world of Harry Potter and told the story within it. They changed everything to fit the story.
      - Arial_29
        
        No it was a sudden change. Look back at how HP2 & HP3 are different. It’s way different.
      - Liderc
        
        It only looks different because they made it look darker with filters. The same sets were used. Watch the behind the scenes disks, Alfonso started while they were still finishing HP2.
      - Azeem
        
        That’s only due because HP1 and 2 had low budgets and they couldn’t expand their sets as much as they wanted to, so they used real places and locations, but in HP3, the budget rose by about $30-40 million so they could build more sets and make Hogwarts more magical and believable.
    - Liderc
      
      Their hair changed!!?? no! not their hair!
      
      Heh, most times change is a good thing. The Potter films looked too childish to continue the way they were in the first two. Alfonso pushed the envelope to make things feel more grown up and interesting. Not all the directors did amazing, but I think we can agree most of them did a fairly good job.
      
      Lionsgate won’t let the new director go off on some crazy tangent, they’ll want to keep things on a safe path to protect their new cash cow. Plus I’m sure Suzanne Collins will still be along for the ride and will have no problem speaking up if she feels Catching Fire isn’t going as she hoped.
- http://twitter.com/Tarah94 Tarah
  
  Yes because a new director means an entirely new crew and set? No. it just means a new director.
  - Josh
    
    It does, actually. CoS –> Azkaban.
    - Hehedied
      
      Azkaban was the best stand alone potter film… Your point?
      - Peeta Mellark
        
        …..correction….THE WORST
      - Azeem
        
        Not really, because Azkaban was the second most critically acclaimed Potter film as it had character development, wonderful effects, and beautiful sets, so how was it bad?
      - Liderc
        
        Agreed, was easily the best stand alone film in the series.
        
        Reviews suggest this as well, look at Rottentomatoes and other review sites.
      - 7Starrchasers
        
        Rotten tomatoes doesn’t always get it right…you said it yourself somewhere in the comments….azkaban was the worst of the films IMO
      - Liderc
        
        Every Potter fan I know loves PoA, people just get nostalgic about the first two so they try to not like the 3rd one but it was a much better film overall than most of the Potters. I’d say it’s much better than DH1/2.
        
        Devout book fans just don’t like that it was a lot different than the book, those of us who know it’s a different medium can enjoy it as a movie.
    - http://twitter.com/Tarah94 Tarah
      
      Those books were completely different as well, though.
  - http://www.eigakanthemovietheater.blogspot.com Jenny Leigh
    
    I understand what you mean, but there are some people on the crew that probably won’t show up again because Gary Ross isn’t there (do you think Soderbergh will second unit again? Oh no.).
    
    The thing is, directors can’t always do a franchise because it really blocks them from continuing on to do other work. It’s sad because I think he’s a good director, but oh well. I’m sure he’ll share his ideas with the next director/already told Lionsgate about them and they’ll hire the new one upon telling them these ideas.
    
    I don’t think there’s any reason to freak out about this.
  - Laura
    
    You’re downplaying the role of a director. The director is the one with the vision. Some of the crew will change for sure and even if sets stay the same, the overall feel and, yes, look of the movie will be different. For Potter, there was a very noticeable difference between CoS and PoA.
- HADASBT
  
  I think he means the feel of Panem, not necessarily the set. Hogwarts’ style and certain elements of the set were definitely changed throughout the movies. I don’t think it was horrible though. I like the evolution from 1-DHP2
- http://twitter.com/BlahJoe Joe
  
  Hogwarts only looked different because it HAD TO. Things needed to be repositioned in order to fit into the story, they never changed it too much that you’d go WHY IS THAT THERE – it won’t need to happen to Panem.
  - http://twitter.com/Andrew_ww Andrew W
    
    They should have thought of that before. The story should fit into the world, not the other way around.
Patrick Star

I r a sad pineapple. But I tink it r b k.
http://twitter.com/SlySound Brett H

As long as they get someone talented.
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=671765079 Jay Banks

WHAT? No…
http://twitter.com/NiallJAdams Niall Adams

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. A new director will be able to take the best aspect of Gary’s direction; whilst changing the worse aspects, such as the overuse of the shaky, allowing the films to grow and improve. Saying that I did love his direction and hope the new director does a good job.
- Josh
  
  whilst changing the worse aspects, such as the overuse of the shaky—
  
  He was going to film Catching Fire differently, meaning no shaky cam(which was as bad as people make it seem…)
Ellen

LATE APRIL FOOL’S?
PLEASE?
http://www.facebook.com/people/Anthony-Rex/100003224841100 Anthony Rex

Noooooooooo. No no no.
RSCAR

Suzanne Collins should just direct it
- http://www.youtube.com/fravit Fravit
  
  Does she have any experience with a camera? Writing and directing are two entirely different things.
  
  They said the same thing when the adapted the musical The Producers to film and it turned out to be a disaster, because the director only ever did stage work before that.
- Liderc
  
  You totally underestimate the director’s job. Watch some behind the scenes with Peter Jackson sometime, you’ll see how insanely familiar with how the end result will look when directing to make a great film. It’s probably one of the most stressful jobs ever. You’re spending 100million dollars of someone else’s money in hopes that your movie will be good enough to recoup and actually make them more money. Not to mention just pleasing the audience.
http://twitter.com/Tarah94 Tarah

I don’t have any issue with that. Harry Potter had 4 different directors and I very much enjoyed each of those films. I think what really matters is that the producer and writer stays the same.
- Hehedied
  
  Agree.. Look how well reviewed all the potter films are. It’s because the had a great cast and writers…. Same for Hungergames. Twilight failed because of weak actors no director can save that.
http://twitter.com/cindydesigns Cindy

I was really hoping he’s stay for the rest of the films, but I’m sure there is someone else who can fill in his shoes.
Gary65

Why are franchises consistency-phobic?
- Somewhere_in_the_middle237
  
  That has got to be the most enlightening thing I have heard today! so true.
- Liderc
  
  Because as they become more profitable and popular, money becomes a bigger point of friction.
  
  It’s also difficult for some people to give 3-5 years of their life to one project, especially a director. They want to do other projects a lot of the time that they’ve been working on behind the scenes for a while and if the schedules don’t line up, it doesn’t work.
  
  I know in Potter, Christopher Columbus intended on doing all of the films, but he said he just couldn’t deal with the stress anymore by the end of the 2nd films post production, so he dropped out and stayed on as a Producer for PoA. You can see him assisting Alfonso on the set of PoA on the behind the scenes disk.
  - Gary65
    
    Yeah but Gary has been more than vocal on his wishes to do CF.
    
    In short, WTF?
    - Liderc
      
      Then he probably wanted more money than they were willing to give him.
      - Gary65
        
        I certainly hope not. If the project and the story didn’t mean enough to him to drop his price a few mil, then I just lost a ton of respect for him and I won’t miss him as much. I have little doubt that Lionsgate were going to pay him handsomely.
        
        Is it ironic that the director of the Hunger Games left cos he was greedy?
      - Liderc
        
        Can’t imagine another reason since he had been vocal about wanting to direct all three films. The only logical reason would be they wouldn’t pay him what he wanted.
http://twitter.com/BrandiTiana Brandi Delhagen

I am extremely shocked by this! Guess we should have forseen this by their tense “negotiations”. Well we can only hope that the series isn’t butchered by this decision.
7Starrchasers

My heart is literally hurting…Are you sure this isn’t a belated April fools joke?????
Kristen

This is not good!! I see Harry Potter all over again!! I think we need an Opinion piece Hypable.
- Hehedied
  
  Chris Columbus couldn’t direct deathly hallows….. Trust me that would’ve been horrid and his style would’ve got boring.
applepie

This article doesn’t seem very reliable… This doesn’t sound believable. I truly hope it’s fake, because I would die if he doesn’t direct Catching Fire! He did such a great job with The Hunger Games </3
Bernardotriana

at least no more SHACKY cam …
upper_westsider

Despite this news, I still hope they’ll be able to work things out. IMO, Lionsgate should give him whatever he wants.
Alyssa

i know this is weird, but i fell kinda betrayed by him..he seemed to have had such a. huge passion for the books but he just backed out of it without much of a fight. this really sucks. lionsgate better make sure they get the perfect director that has the same supposed ‘passion’ that gary had..it won’t be pretty if they screw this up.
http://twitter.com/Annanass777 Anna Di

What?? NOOOOOOOOO!!
Guest

Aww. I was really hoping for consistency, the one thing that the Harry Potter movies lacked. The movies were, on an individual basis, still good. But they don’t exactly flow well together, because of all the different directors’ visions. This makes me sad.
http://twitter.com/taylie27 Taylore Thompson

I really hope this isn’t true, after all wasn’t everyone in the production crew happy with the movie, and, shaky camera, or not the movie is doing very well, if Lionsgate gets rid of him I think it’d be a huge mistake especially when he’s stated he’s committed to doing the rest
Ashlee

Catherine Hardwicke for director!!! haha JK. ;)
- Mia
  
  Good one. Welcomeeeee to Catching Fire (in an intensly nasally voice) ;)
Sapph

NOOOO. The next director will be another David Yates, sure…
Glaciusx

SOBBING.
Cheezy229

They better get someone good to replace him or I’m going to be super pissed.
Rinzler63

This is the first time I have ever thought any bad could come from The Hunger games. They need to get him back to direct! I don’t want the look and the fill of the movie to change. And I really like the way the camera moved in this film. I don’t want to see anything different. Im t’d off.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Maria-Wang/542480760 Maria Wang

It’s about the money isn’t it….it’s always about the money. Ross probably turned down 8 million dollars or something
http://twitter.com/BlahJoe Joe

I’m kind of glad this happened. Potter is my favourite film franchise and I liked how the different directors took on the challenge, maybe because it was eight films, not four (Mockingjay Part 1 & 2). If Chris Colombus had done ALL the Potter films, god forbid I would’ve got bored, he did 1 and 2 justice in his own style, which I like. Maybe with Ross leaving, they’ll get a director who DOESN’T USE HAND-HELD CAMERAS ALL THE TIME. And maybe is better at character developement (like Rue should’ve been)?
- LilyLuna
  
  Well I think it worked for Potter because the series got progressively darker. Deathly Hallows certainly demanded a director with a different style than say, Sorcerer’s Stone.
  
  I worry about THG changing director’s though as the series covers a much smaller length of time than Potter and a consistent style would have worked well (granted the shakey camera thing is remedied). I’m not saying I don’t think a new director won’t be able to do Catching Fire Justice, I just think it’s a shame for consistency’s sake, that such a short series can’t hold a director.
  - http://www.facebook.com/nikolausaldrich Nick Aldrich
    
    The Original Star Wars trilogy had different directors for each film (Lucas only directed the original star wars and the prequels. Empire and Jedi were not directed by him) and that’s considered to be one of the best trilogies of all time (the original trilogy). I bring up the original star wars films because their narrative progression is very similar to Hunger Games.
    
    It’ll be fine in the end. Lionsgate is a good studio and they’re small. Until Hunger Games they’ve never had anything that could really be considered a “blockbuster”. Now that it’s a success everyone is jumping on it to get as much money as possible. To be honest, I’m glad Gary Ross is gone. He did fine with the first one but like Chris Columbus I find his style too literal from the books.
OhMyGinger!

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooo :o!!!! I loved the first film, why oh why?????
FeatherWitch48

This is such a shame, I had really hoped that The Hunger Games would succeed where it seems every other book to film franchise has failed. I know some people feel a change in director does not make a difference but there is so much evidence to the contrary. With Harry Potter the changes in director caused a very disjointed film series. With Twilight the changes in director have gradually improved the quality of the films but if Twilight and Breaking Dawn are compared there is a stark difference in the style and feel of the films. I didn’t want this to happen to The Hunger Games, I wanted to get to know the Panem from the first film but that seems unlikely now as the new director is unlikely to share an identical vision with Ross.
- Hehedied
  
  Peter Jackson was the only one in love with the trilogy I guess.
  - moonshoespotter1712
    
    He filmed all three at once so he couldn’t have changed anyway. But yes, he was.
wedabelm

I can’t believe that Lionsgate will let him walk away, especially
after the success of the first film! This makes me so sad. : (
Johanna

NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://twitter.com/CharlieBooksac charliebrooks

what :O he was perfect!!! he understood the story so well the next one wont be the same :0
Jelly

If this turns out to be true I won’t be unhappy.
Josuemc 93

I know I’ll probably get shammed for saying this but those who complain about the shaky camerawork in Hunger Games and say that it got this ill or whatnot need to man up. It’s not real! Seriously “oh i almost threw up i hate it! oh my god this is dangerous change it!”. Some people still don’t understand its all in the head.
- Liderc
  
  It didn’t make me sick at all, it just made the movie not good. When you can’t even see who’s fighting who because the camera is shaking so bad, that means you’ve gone overboard. The entire final fight scene was shaky cam, it was ridiculous. He abused it’s uses and it obviously showed, the majority of reviews mentioned it’s overuse.
- moonshoespotter1712
  
  What do you mean, it’s not real? Looking at a screen that’s shaky, your brain thinks that you’re moving. Have you been on one of those stimulus rides or whatever? And for it to be going on for 2+ hours will cause sickness if someone suffers from it. It’s not a case of manning up…
Robert Lewandowski

This could change the game completely. Ross really had plans for CF, I remember he said he knew who he wanted to play Finnick, had plans for the feel of the movie etc.

This is really convenient though, and I think Lionsgate pushed him out, absolutely. What will be really sickening is if they pay millions (the millions they weren’t prepared to pay Gary) to land a really huge director. I think that will be so disrespectful to Gary, but it’s expected, for sure, and inevitable really.

Let’s just wait and see though.
http://www.eigakanthemovietheater.blogspot.com Jenny Leigh

Wow. This is some shocking news, especially because he has mentioned his ideas for Catching Fire. I wonder what he didn’t agree about with Lionsgate?
- Liderc
  
  What else? Money…
  - http://www.eigakanthemovietheater.blogspot.com Jenny Leigh
    
    Always. Stupid reason, really. I’m sure Lionsgate wasn’t making him poor. Oh greed. Anyway, if it’s true he didn’t really care to finish the series anyway, why should I be sad about his departure? I want someone who wants to do the job.
http://twitter.com/fleurissant Heather Sohara

I was as unhappy as anyone else when the Harry Potter sets changed
pretty drastically from COS to POA, but in Catching Fire this might be a
blessing – or at least not as noticeable. Think about it: Katniss lives
in the Victors’ Village, Cray gets replaced by Thread, which changes
both the mood and the structure of District 12, and the Quarter Quell is
in a new location under the direction of a brand-new Gamemaker. I’m
sure Gary Ross would have done an excellent job, but in many ways this
particular sequel practically begs for a fresh perspective.
Alonninos

This is the SUCK. Even if I wasn’t totally a fan of the shaky camera work in The Hunger Games, whenever Ross spoke about the series he really impressed me with his dedication and respect.

I don’t think they’ll be able to find someone else with his level of commitment to the integrity of the story.
Allison L.

NOOOOOOOOOOO! i hoping for a franchise that actually stuck with a director! this would be much upsetting…
HG Fan

Is it bad that I am now super worried about the casting of Finnick and Johanna…?
Guest

let’s keep an open mind and hope for the best, people. IMO, change was good for the Harry Potter movies, and maybe it will be good for HG too. who knows what will happen? let’s just keep our fingers crossed.
gcw07

This is horrible news and actually will probably push the movie back 6 months to a year. Ross was more then just the director, he helped write it too. This is not going to turn out good for the sequels all because Lionsgate cheaped out. Seriously if they aren’t willing to spend the money on someone like Ross, who do you think they are going to get for even less money? Nobody good is going to do it for less then what he would have. He was actually passionate about the material and worked hard to not change it that much. I’ll be shocked if the next guy does the same thing. He will want to put his “mark” on the story and change it up.
- http://www.facebook.com/people/Maria-Wang/542480760 Maria Wang
  
  I think the opposite. Directors and actors get paid so much these days it’s ridiculous. I mean, he was got $3 million for thg. With that kind of money, your great grandchildren could be set for life! They are all just being greedy, both Lionsgate and Ross. And Ross, honestly, when is he going to get another chance to be a part of something like this? Obviously, he didn’t care all that much about the film. It’s not like he needs all that money to live on. He’s just greedy, is all.
  - gcw07
    
    Yeah, but $3 million isn’t a lot of money. I know it sounds like a lot, but that is going to be under 1% of the total money they make off the movie and that is if it only makes half a billion. It will probably make more then that after dvd/tv releases. It wasn’t too much to ask for more especially because the chances of the sequel earning as much or more then the first.
Hehedied

He shouldnt’ve been greedy…. Thats what happens to big franchises the directors get greedy…. They should care about the cast and work more then the money…. He turned down three million… They need to make directors sign a treaty, so they can’t bale on franchises… Hungergames is only a trilogy… Just finish them!!! Not like potter (8 movies, that’s hard to keep with one director) just three!! What happened to directors falling in love with the cast and crew? Like peter Jackson.
Star

Gary should absolutely direct all three (or four)! Everyone on the cast has praised his work, so I don’t trust another person to bring that kind of quality acting out of them for Catching Fire. Maybe the shaky cam was a problem for some people, but Gary can change that. He has already said he had different ideas for the second one. Also, there’s a learning curve he’s been through for the first movie. He can only improve based on his experiences, I hope.

I just want consistency. He seems to really understand the characters and their motivation, and I don’t want someone else coming in an changing what he has started.

Hopefully, they can come to an agreement… I will be disappointed if Lionsgate can’t keep him.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Maria-Wang/542480760 Maria Wang

I’ve read that the major reason Ross left wasn’t anything financial; instead, he doesn’t have a desire to spend another couple years involved with the franchise. Guess he didn’t like what he saw with HP and Twilight
- Liderc
  
  Wasn’t he saying how excited he was about doing the next film? Thought he said that in the last few interviews.
  
  Peter Jackson spent years on the LOTR films and he was able to do other films, including the huge King Kong remake.
  
  Same goes for Christopher Nolan and Batman, he’s done incredible films in between the Dark Knight trilogy. Inception was brilliant.
Vajackster

Yay, maybe Catching Fire will actually be decent…
- http://www.facebook.com/people/Maria-Wang/542480760 Maria Wang
  
  lol, you are the 15% that didn’t like the movie
  - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_VCJSDSEDKYOBEKWGIXCDB2QPYA Henry
    
    alot dont like the movie actually. Of coarse most like it pn this site… its a fan site haha. Go on other blogs lots didnt like Gary’s vision . I loved it, but i know so many who hated it.
  - Liderc
    
    A “Fresh” rating doesn’t mean people liked the movie, it just means they felt is was better than 2 stars. If you read a lot of the reviews you’ll see a lot of people didn’t like the movie but commended it for it’s intelligent use of it’s lower budget.
    - http://www.facebook.com/people/Maria-Wang/542480760 Maria Wang
      
      But it’s at least decent. So 15% think it isn’t decent.
    - moonshoespotter1712
      
      Liderc, I see you around and you are quite full of negativity -.-
      
      “Fresh” isn’t just more than 2 stars, it’s quite flexible. Some 2.5 or even 3 stars are ‘rotten’; it depends on the critic.
      - Liderc
        
        You think I insulted your article you wrote, that’s why you think I’m negative but I’m just being honest. I was just pointing out that no movie has done 3D well except for Avatar so far. You were trying to jump on the 3D bandwagon and no one was having it, not just me.
      - moonshoespotter1712
        
        Wait what, no! That’s not why haha. Just generally…
      - moonshoespotter1712
        
        And I’m the last person who would jump on a ‘bandwagon’ for the sake of it. I’m not aware that liking 3D is ‘in’ at the moment, I just saw reviews for Titanic and wrote it.
      - Liderc
        
        You hadn’t even seen Titanic in 3D at the time, so I don’t see how you were capable of writing an honest article about seeing it in 3D.
      - moonshoespotter1712
        
        I didn’t say I thought Titanic’s 3D was great, I said I heard that it was, and it just got me thinking about how people criticise 3D just because it’s 3D, and it’s more expensive etc., and they don’t stop to consider the positives.
        
        Anyway, it’s irrelevant to this article… So let’s forgive and forget, shall we? It’s our own opinions, and I apologise for calling you negative.
hpatdh33

This sucks, his depiction of the reaping was perfection in my opinion!
http://twitter.com/mwdickens2013 Mary Warren Dickens

Crap.
Peeta Mellark

FUCK!!!!!!!!!………….sorry I had to get that off my chest. Gary WHY? You got the story and the characters so well, now I know that you were just wanting money… :( Im seriously gonna cry this fucking sucks
Jen

stupid stupid STUPID
wedabelm

#WeWantGaryRoss
Dudley

I want THG to have the consistency that HP or Twilight didn’t have: the same director for all the movies. Although I want Gary Ross to continue to direct Catching Fire, I think Steven Soderbergh would be a good second choice (he was the 2nd unit director and he seemed very impressed with Gary Ross’s vision in interviews).
Nevertheless, I’m not even sure the article is reliable and I don’t want to be making judgments about who’s-doing-what and money issues and whatnot.
annie

i loved gary ross because he made the film feel small and personal, granted that was mostly due to a small budget but his vision for the movie was sot on. i don’t want the new director to make the series feel like the big blockbuster, if that makes any sense
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_VCJSDSEDKYOBEKWGIXCDB2QPYA Henry
  
  he did give it its own unique feel for sure.
http://twitter.com/AlexisMJohnston Alexis May Johnston

I pray this isn’t yet official!
http://twitter.com/TokoMasho Matthew Potter

Oh well. He definitely did a good job with THG, but it’s not like he’s some remarkable, can-do-no-wrong, must-have director. I’m sure others will do well too.
Azeem

Directors need to learn more from Peter Jackson and Christopher Nolan. They actually care about what they do more than a bloody pay cheque.
- gcw07
  
  Peter Jackson and Christopher Nolan are and were paid millions of dollars more for their work. If WB had told Nolan that he wasn’t worth less then 1% of the total gross of a movie, he wouldn’t be back either.
  - Liderc
    
    Yeah and Peter Jackson had to sue New Line Cinema just to get the money they owed him. They falsified the back overall gross numbers so they could pay him less for the percentage he was owed in his contract for the films. These movie studios are ruthless when it comes to money.
    
    Not sure if Nolan gets paid a straight fee or gets an overall gross percentage. He’s always so mysterious =P
    - Azeem
      
      But they were right to do so, because if someone didn’t give the fair amount, the amount you both agreed on, then you have the right to sue if you didn’t get that amount. But Gary Ross was just being greedy and if he really cared about the series, then he would take the money they offered him and make the films. Plus, he has only directed 3 films whilst Christopher Nolan and Peter Jackson have directed many more than him, and all were successes.
  - Azeem
    
    That’s only because they both directed, produced and wrote their films. Also, LOTR and TDK/Inception grossed a lot more than THG and so 1% of that is much more than what 1% of THG’s gross is anyway.
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_VCJSDSEDKYOBEKWGIXCDB2QPYA Henry
  
  peter jackson was different he filmed them all back to back.
  - Azeem
    
    that just shows he cared so much more about the vision of LOTR that he wanted them all to be consistent.
ilikevegetables

i’m actually open to a new director. this could be good..?
FuzzyWolfLuvJBJ

Noooooo this is not happening!!! Please Gary come back, I’ll pay you to direct CF. Don’t let Lionsgate do this to THG like Summit just HAD to get a different directer for every twilight movie. They aren’t consistent then. Lionsgate screw your heads on straight and pay Gary whatever he wants. He did the first one almost perfectly, do NOT get a different directer for every movie. PLEASE just don’t.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Joey-Mangum/1820064015 Joey Mangum

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! D:
Louie Schuth

Ugh, please no.
Mad

I will die if this is true. Not gonna lie, I was ready to believe that Catching Fire would be as good as or better than THG if he continued to direct.
Mel823

After the “tense negotiations” news, not really surprised by this news. The sad, but honest truth, is that when it comes to franchises, especially book adaptations, directors are disposable. All the movie studio needs is for the first movie in a series to be a monetary hit and, and as long as there aren’t major cast changes, they know people will come back for the rest of the franchise. Plus, it probably didn’t help that his directing was the most criticized thing about THG. Also, don’t be surprised if the budget for Catching Fire is not that big.
Septima

He can’t leave!! He understands the books so well! He’s a genius – those extra scenes he wrote are perfect. The movies won’t be the same without him and his vision! Plus the directing between the movies will be completely inconsistent. Like @Mad, I will DIE if this true. If it is, we HAVE to petition for his return. The rest of the IndieWire article says his decision was mostly a creative decision, because he doesn’t want to repeat himself career-wise by doing a sequel, but we should still demand that Lionsgate offer him enough money so that he can’t refuse. Please don’t leave us Gary! (clearly I’m a fan)
Fetesha

Oh man…
Harrypotterfan518

Oh no! He did the first one so well! I’m nervous about the next one now.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Sofia-Thomas/100001117166893 Sofia Thomas

Heck no. DISLIKE. I want him to come back!!
http://www.facebook.com/people/Sofia-Thomas/100001117166893 Sofia Thomas

I totally, one hundred percent agree with you!
Fakecheeseisyum

It’s a real big shame. He seemed so dedicated. The other hp movies turned out fine after columbus left, if not a little different
Phoebe

I’m certainly not happy about this, but SOME of the Potter directors, in my opinion, brought new and exciting things to the series and moved it forward. Ok, basically I just dislike Cuaron’s interpretation, even though so many people rave about him. He was too busy taking his own liberties and trying to add things to a world that was just how we liked it. Otherwise I loved all HP directors, for unique reasons. I guess this worries me for Catching Fire that someone will try to come in and establish their own thing, but I’ll wait and see I suppose. Anybody have any votes for who should come in next, if this news is true?
- gcw07
  
  If this wasn’t true I think Lionsgate would have released a statement already. As for who should replace him. I’m in favor of Steven Soderbergh. He was a 2nd unit director on HG, so he wouldn’t be completely unfamiliar with everybody involved. The problem will be getting him because I’m guessing he is already booked.
- http://twitter.com/vonchambers Devon Chambers
  
  I offer up two names. The first is Joe Wright (Atonement and more recently Hanna) I think he can handle not only the action and violence well (Hanna) but with Hanna he also had to direct a strong female lead. He can also handle the sappy kind of lovey stuff like you see in Atonement and his other movies.
  
  The second name I put forth will make you made but I think he is one of the most brilliant directors of our time. Alfonso Cuaron, who obviously directed the third harry potter film but his movement with the camera is breathtaking and outside of Dan he really pushed the actors out of their boyish / girlish children persona and made Harry Potter more adult like.
  
  Realistically they will likely hire a fresh and upcoming, somewhat competent TV director (think game of thrones) because its easier for a studio to boss them around than a big name like Cuaron or Wright. Another off the wall choice would be Paul Greengrass if you want to continue the shaky cam effect.
Ellie

So disappointed! He did such a great job with the first one. I just hope this isn’t bad news for the quality of the others.
http://twitter.com/PikakeFlor Jasmine Alvarado

No! This cannot be happening! This makes me so sad! And worried for the future of The Hunger Games. :(
http://hunyumstan.tumblr.com/ hunyum

Well this is shit. We can’t have four directors directing four different movies. The vision just gets lost down the way!
Samuel

This is bad news. He did a great job on the first film and I even preferred it to the book in a lot of ways. I think the second book is weaker than the first and they really needed him. With the new director and the delay of the release to possibly two years after the release of the first film, Catching Fire could really suffer as a film.
- LotusCalm
  
  I don’t know about better, but it was certainly the best book-to-movie adaptation I’ve ever seen. I thought it was brilliant, and I was glad that the other two would be done justice. Now… well, I’m worried again.
Azeem

Hopefully the new director will use a Steadicam.
LotusCalm

WHAT? NO. I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THIS. NO.
yui

i have been reading the articles prior to the THG’s release and some interviews of the people involved in making the movie and the replacing of executives…

summit people now are bosses on lionsgate. so they chuck out the executive people who developed The Hunger Games and now report surface that Gary will be out too?politics. i fear for what happens to the next movie.THG is not Twilight. Dont make it a Love Triangle-centric story.
Laura J

NOOOOO! urgh this is the worst news ever :( yeah the camera was a little shaky now and then but i truly believe he did a PHENOMENAL job. Little risks he took- like have no music in bits (Katniss in the tube) etc and the tracker jacker scene and urghhh nooooooo!
Santiarof

I dont know what to think. Gary Ross did amazingly, and i was really looking forward to him directing CF. On the other hand, a fresh perspective on the story doesn’t have to be bad, but maybe the opposite. We just can’t judge until the movie comes out. IMO, it totally worked to have different directors in the potter films, and it is my favorite series. But those were 8. Anyway, whatever happens, let’s wait until the official announcement. But, deep down, I hope Ross stays. He did a hell of a job!!

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IndieWire: Gary Ross will not return to direct ‘Catching Fire’

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