The “Hunger Games” series may hold up a mirror to the ills of our society, but stars Julianne Moore and Elizabeth Banks think things need to change within their own industry as well.
“Our industry…it's a microcosm of the society at large. You know, for me, anyway, I would love if we were more of a leader than a follower,” said Banks, who reprises her role as Effie Trinket in the final installment, “Mockingjay – Part 2.” “But for the most part, Hollywood reflects what's going on on the ground in the world around us. It's really the — you know, there's always been this patriarchy since the beginning of time. [Women] have never had the upper hand.”
One interesting thing about the films is the way they mirror the lives of the actors themselves — a facet reflected most strongly in the form of Jennifer Lawrence's Katniss Everdeen, whose newfound fame occasionally serves as a hindrance in her fight against the Capitol. Banks and Moore can certainly relate to this loss of anonymity; indeed, the latter told me that perceptions formed when she's on the screen have the tendency to persist in her everyday life.
“One of the things that happens for actors, and that we want to have happen, is that when you're in a film, people are projecting ideas onto you. We're there for the audience to project an idea upon,” she said. “But we only exist that way within a film. So in real life, that projection no longer exists. It is interesting when people project that onto you when you are just a person.”
For more from the actors, including Banks' special nickname for Effie, check out the full interview above and below.
“The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” hits theaters on November 20.