January 25, 2012

Hunger Games Movie's Peacekeeper, Spills it All

HG Girl on Fire shares us their interview with one of the actors playing the Capitol Police, popularly known as the Peacekeepers. He is Jesse Lewis from North Carolina and read the article below for HG Girl on Fire's interview with him.

How’d you get cast as a Peacekeeper? Was this you first job on a film?

I got cast as a Peacekeeper because my wife is really big on the books and found out that they were shooting in the Charlotte area. She sent in a picture of herself and a picture of me. I got a call about 2 months later asking me if I wanted to be a peacekeeper. This was my first job on a film.

How secretive was the set? Did you have to sign a confidentiality agreement or was it just known that you can’t talk about anything to anyone.

The set was extremely secretive for the main actors and the peacekeepers. The children walked from dressing to the set but they put us peacekeepers in white robes and transported us in vans with tinted windows. I didn’t sign anything but they were very clear that any pictures taken would get you kicked off the set for good. They didn’t allow phones and stuff like that.

What was your first thought at seeing your Peacekeeper uniform?

When I first put my uniform on and looked in the mirror I smiled because it fit, which meant I got the job. The first thing I thought of was that this time next year they might make an action figure after me. It was exciting, kinda like being one of the first Storm Troopers but better. 

[Note: Jesse is not featured in official still below]



Did you get to meet the main cast members? Do you have any funny stories from set? 

I did get to meet most of the actors from the District 12 scenes. I met and got to speak with Jennifer Lawrence, Elizabeth Banks, and Josh Hutcherson while I was in the background of the scene when their names are chosen for the games. I later met Liam Hemsworth. I met Suzanne Collins as well but none of us knew who she was while she was talking to us. We figured it out the next day.

Meeting Hemsworth also provides the funny story. I walked up to the guy in between takes because I was getting some water. It was hot as hell the entire time. Making small talk and thinking he was the stand in for Gale. I asked him how much he was getting paid. He looked at me kinda confused and I knew right away that he wasn’t the stand in. I told him who I thought he was and retracted my question. He started laughing and introduced himself. He seemed really down to earth and and made an effort to talk to any of the kids that said hello.

How familiar with the story were you before you started? 

Before I started working on the film I was not familiar with the stories at all. While working on the reaping in between takes I actually asked Josh Hutcherson how he was going to die (in the movie). He started laughing and said, “you clearly haven’t read the book”.

I was not aware of how emotionally draining some of the scenes were until Katniss traded herself for Prim. They shot that part over and over. Not one of the children in the crowd made a noise. It was deep and very emotional.

Were you shocked to see yourself in the trailer? Were you aware of how emotionally draining your scenes might be for the actors and the viewers?

I wasn’t really shocked to see myself in the trailer. I figured if they showed Elizabeth Banks that I would be behind her. I was also probably the only person in the world to know if was me. I was more excited to see the other peacekeepers in the trailer than myself. It was cool seeing people you got to know in action on the big screen. They all looked so intimidating and mean in the trailer but were all really nice guys.
Thank you HG Girl on Fire.

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