When pressed on who would be picked to play the series’ teen heroine, Ross was always clear that he wanted a good fit rather than a big name. “We’ll cast the right person for the part,” he told Entertainment Weekly. “Lionsgate has been great in the respect that they don’t feel that this needs a movie star in Katniss’ role, so we can cast whoever we want.”

It was also clear that beauty alone wouldn’t be enough to win an actress the role. “I don’t think that’s the main criterion for Katniss,” Ross insisted. “What makes Katniss attractive is her strength and her assuredness and her defiance and ultimately her compassion. She knows her own truth, she feels deeply and fiercely, and this is something that the actress has to bring with her.”

In the end, the actress in question turned out to be X-Men star Jennifer Lawrence, a choice that was met with breathless approval by author Suzanne Collins. “Jennifer's just an incredible actress," she gushed in an official press release. "So powerful, vulnerable, beautiful, unforgiving and brave. I never thought we'd find somebody this perfect for the role, and I can't wait for everyone to see her play it.”

Ross was similarly chuffed at the appointment. “'I’m so excited to work with Jen and see her bring this character to life,” he said. “Katniss requires a young actress with strength, depth, complexity, tenderness, and power. There are very few people alive who can bring that to a role. Jen brings it in spades. She's going to be an amazing Katniss.”

Praise indeed, but what did Miss Lawrence herself make of it all? Well, let’s just say she had all her fingers and toes crossed. “I did this really long improv with Gary Ross,” she told LA Radio station Kiis FM. “It was the most terrifying thing of my life! When I left, and when I heard it went well, I was like, 'Are you serious?' I had my heart in my throat the entire time. I haven't been nervous at an audition in so long, but that one got me.”