As The Hunger Games: Catching Fire continues to burn brightly (sorry) at the box office, work continues apace setting up the two-part adaptation of Mockingjay, Suzanne Collins’ final novel in the trilogy. Today brings word that Robert Knepper will play a character called Antonius.
Who he? Well… there’s some confusion among Hunger Games fans, as the name doesn’t actually appear in the novel. Current speculation wonders if he's a version of Aurelias, the psychologist who treats Katniss, and Deadline describes his character as a minister in President Snow (Donald Sutherland)'s regime, but there’s been no official confirmation of anything. He may well turn out to be a character invented for the films, or one who combines several figures from the books. We wouldn’t be all that surprised: Mockingjay is a sprawling story even to fit into the running time of two movies.
The book sees Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) leading the districts of Panem in a rebellion against the tyrannical and corrupt Capitol. As the war that will determine the fate of Panem escalates, Katniss must decide for herself who she can trust and what needs to be done, with everything she cares for in the balance.
Along with the franchise regulars, new cast additions include Julianne Moore, Natalie Dormer, Stef Dawson, Patina Miller, Wes Chatham and Elden Henson. Francis Lawrence is directing the film, with Part 1 due November 21 next year and Part 2 scheduled for November 20, 2015.