Hunger Games Fireside Chat Podcast

Happy Third Quarter Quell episode to us! In Episode 75 of Fireside Chat, we start off by talking about last week's "electrifying" news: We have a Beetee! After two weeks of no casting news whatsoever, we learned on Friday that acclaimed actor Jeffrey Wright (Source Code, Casino Royale, Syriana) will be playing our beloved Volts. Next, we help Ellie from Down with the Capitol make an exciting announcement that is sure to rock the Hunger Games fandom! To conclude, we pull fun and interesting questions and topics out of our trusty grab bag.

In Episode 74 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off by chatting about all the latest filming-related news: who's in Atlanta, when principle photography might start, what secrets the extras casting calls may reveal, etc. We also weigh in on Trish Summerville, who has replaced Judianna Makovsky as costume designer. How do we feel about this? Many have said that the costumes in The Hunger Games were a weak point. Do we agree? How might the costumes for Catching Fire change with a new designer on board? On a similar note, we recently learned that jeweler Dana Schneider, who created the mockingjay pin for the first film, will be crafting "pieces of jewelry for two other main characters." Who do we think these two characters are, and what pieces of jewelry will they be wearing? Lastly, we talk all about the exclusive Target, Walmart, and iTunes DVD/Blu-ray special features. To conclude, we pull a few fun topics out of our grab bag!

In Episode 73 of Fireside Chat, we open the show by addressing last Wednesday's EPIC (but not entirely unexpected) news: Sam Claflin was cast as Finnick Odair! Finally, after over a MONTH of rumors and speculation, it's now official! Finnick Watch 2012 has officially ended and Hunger Games history has been made. We share our opinions of Sam and this casting decision and also talk about what fan reactions have been like thus far. After getting all of our Sam/Finnick feelings out, we revisit the non-exclusive DVD/Blu-ray special features and discuss them all in-depth now that everyone has had a chance to watch them. NEXT week, on Episode 74, we'll take a look at the special features that can only be found on the Target, Walmart, and iTunes editions of the movie. We cap off the show by pulling a few fun topics and questions out of our topic cornucopia!

In Episode 72 of Fireside Chat, we begin by discussing Stephanie Leigh Schlund, our Cashmere! This announcement came last Tuesday and was -- tragically! -- the last bit of casting news we received all week. Next, we share our midnight DVD release party experiences since several of our panelists were able to interview some of the cast members at their Walmart appearances. Adam was lucky enough to interview Amandla Stenberg at Toys 'R' Us in Times Square on Saturday, so we talk about that, too! We spend the rest of the show talking about the Hunger Games DVD itself. Our main focus is all of the incredible special features, so make sure you watch them before you listen! That said, we only talk about the "standard" special features found on every DVD/Blu-ray: Game Maker, The World is Watching, Letters from the Rose Garden, Controlling the Games, A Conversation with Gary Ross and Elvis Mitchell, Propaganda Film, and Marketing Gallery.

In Episode 71 of Fireside Chat, before getting into the meat of this week's show, we begin with a brief news roundup and chat about Jennifer Lawrence's pay raise and the revelation that both Mockingjay films will be shot back-to-back. We also give you a quick, spoiler-free DVD preview since we were lucky enough to get an advance copy (if you haven't yet read Savanna's special features review, check it out on our website). We spend the rest of the show weighing in on all of the casting news from the last week: Meta Golding as Enobaria, Bruno Gunn as Brutus, Alan Ritchson as Gloss, E. Roger Mitchell as Chaff, and Maria Howell as Seeder. It's raining tributes! Hallelujah, it's raining tributes!

In Episode 70 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off by talking about Lynn Cohen, our Mags! This casting announcement came last Thursday (8/2), and we're pretty darn excited about it. We also spend some time discussing the latest news concerning filming locations and schedules. (In a recent interview with Ryan Seacrest, Josh Hutcherson not only confirmed that they will indeed be filming in Atlanta, but also that he'd be flying to Atlanta to start shooting in about two weeks.) We also address the Oahu rumor and The Idiom, which may or may not be the working title for Catching Fire (get ready for some extras casting information!). Lastly, we weigh in on the "steamy" Crackpot Theory and impossible Cave, Marry, Kill that we skipped last week!

In Episode 69 of Fireside Chat, we begin the show by discussing and analyzing the first official map of Panem, which was released through the Facebook game The Hunger Games Adventures. Additionally, in honor and in celebration of the London 2012 Summer Olympics (which officially opened this past Friday), we challenge ourselves and our panelists to assign Olympic events to our favorite Hunger Games characters. 

In Episode 68 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off by recapping the 2012 Teen Choice Awards, which aired on Sunday night. How did The Hunger Games fare? Next, we welcome the amazing Amanda Plummer to the cast! We learned last Tuesday that Amanda will be playing Wiress, and we couldn't be more excited about this news! (We also briefly discuss Jena Malone, who we learned has been OFFICIALLY cast as Johanna -- see Episode 66 for a full discussion of Jena). We then turn our attention to Sam Claflin, who is rumored to have been offered the role of Finnick Odair. Who is Sam Claflin, and why are so many fans divided when it comes to the possibility of him playing Finnick? Lastly, we chat with YouTuber extraordinaire CassJayTuck about her love of the series and a certain lovesick baker that has taken up residence in her home.

In Episode 67 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off with a Comic-Con recap from Natasha, an admin at TheFandom.net. Next, we talk all about our new Head Gamemaker, Philip Seymour Hoffman! What will he bring to the character of Plutarch Heavensbee? Do we think the role of Plutarch might be changed for the film? And what might Plutarch LOOK like (hair, costume, etc.)? Also, since we now know the release dates for Mockingjay: Part 1 and Mockingjay: Part 2, we talk about where they might split the book and why splitting it was such a smart decision.

In Episode 66 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off by discussing the news that broke last Tuesday: Jena Malone has been offered the role of Johanna Mason! We then chat about Philip Seymour Hoffman -- our Plutarch Heavensbee! Lionsgate made it official earlier today (Monday, 7/9/12), and we couldn't be more thrilled! We then speculate about Lionsgate's new Catching Fire casting page, located at www.catchingfirecasting.com. Assuming the Mystery Man below Snow is Plutarch, who is the Mystery Woman at the bottom of the page!? We conclude by talking to a recent Hunger Games convert about why he changed his tune, and we also do some Comic-Con forecasting.

In Episode 65 of Fireside Chat, we briefly discuss the latest Catching Fire casting rumors (Hunter Parrish as Finnick??) and chat about paparazzi photos before launching into an hour-ish of UNSCRIPTED awesomeness! As with all our "Unscripted" episodes, we spend the evening digging into a grab bag full of listener-submitted questions, discussion topics, Crackpot Theories, What Ifs?, Would You Rathers?, and Cave/Marry/Kills.

In Episode 64 of Fireside Chat, Sheila from HG Girl on Fire joins us to share her experience at the Fiction 2 Film convention in Chicago. We chat about Zoe Aggeliki and Mia Wasikowska, two rumored Johanna contenders that have been generating a LOT of buzz (good and bad) over the last few days. We also discuss the rumor that actor and professional wrestler Kevin Nash is in talks for a role in Catching Fire. (AND, did you hear that Lil' Romeo apparently met with Lionsgate about possibly joining the franchise?) (Oh yeah -- and there's the whole Jena Malone thing, too!) To round out the show, we do Catching Fire Pick a Page and explore a listener-submitted Crackpot Theory about the population of Panem.

In Episode 63 of Fireside Chat, we kick things off with a round-up of the latest movie-related news (including the most recent casting rumors! Hooray!). We also recap and wrap up the HEATED Snow vs. Coin debate that closed out Episode 62 last week. And even though it's a bit too late to appeal to Francis Lawrence, we present a wish list of Catching Fire scenes that absolutely MUST make it into the movie. To conclude, we intro a new segment called Casting Nightmares (warning: listen at your own risk, as this segment may actually give you nightmares).

It's time for another "Unscripted" episode! We have no set plan or agenda in place for Episode 62. We do, however, have a grab bag full of listener-submitted questions, discussion topics, Crackpot Theories, What Ifs?, Would You Rathers?, and Cave/Marry/Kills. We choose topics from the grab bag (or "topic cornucopia") at random and discuss, debate, and speculate!

In Episode 61 of Fireside Chat, we kick off the show by recapping the 2012 MTV Movie Awards and celebrating what was a decidedly victorious night for The Hunger Games! Next, we take a look at all of the crazy Finnick-related rumors that have been floating around the Internet for the last few weeks and set a few records straight. We also discuss possible filming locations for Catching Fire. To conclude, we investigate an incredibly cool listener-submitted Crackpot Theory: Is the Capitol actually located in Canada!?