Jennifer Lawrence sang a few songs in the previous movies, but Zegler's singing is more prominently featured. Just as some of Katniss' songs played pivotal roles in the plots of past Hunger Games movies, the decision to put more music in The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is also story-driven.
Rachel Zegler and Dave Cobb Explore the Music of 'Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,' From Why She Sang Live On-Set to How the Smiths Figured In.
Did Jennifer Lawrence do her own singing in Hunger Games?
During an appearance on Late Night With David Letterman, Lawrence said she was nervous about singing the song in front of other people and had asked the director, Francis Lawrence, to see if Lorde, who appeared throughout the film's official soundtrack, could record song, with Lawrence lip-syncing.
Rachel, who plays Lucy Gray Baird in the film, sings eight songs on the film's official soundtrack, including 'Pure as the Driven Snow', 'Nothing You Can Take From Me' and the franchise's iconic 'The Hanging Tree'. And if you're wondering if that's her singing them all... the answer is yes.
It was written by Suzanne Collins and composed by Howard, Jeremiah Fraites and Wesley Schultz from the band the Lumineers. The song was released by Republic Records on December 9, 2014, as the second single from the soundtrack for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 (2014).
Hunger Games - The Hanging Tree // Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Andrea Lykke (Live)
Is Lucy Gray Katniss' grandmother?
"I've heard both theories," "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" director Francis Lawrence told Business Insider. "Lucy Gray, I can say, is definitely not a relative of Katniss."
Origin. "The Hanging Tree" has a brief backstory in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. It was one of many songs composed by Lucy Gray Baird, and it was written about the execution of Arlo Chance at the real hanging tree. The song was banned by Commander Hoff, who considered it rebellious.
Summary. Coriolanus Snow genuinely believed he loved Lucy Gray, but his possessive and jealous tendencies cast doubts on the authenticity of his love. Snow's possessiveness extended to other people he loved, such as his cousin Tigris, demonstrating a dangerous and possessive pattern in his relationships.
Once he decided his lover was a threat to his future, he interpreted the words as a warning that he would suffer for his crimes. Years after the events of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, when Snow hears Katniss singing the verses of "The Hanging Tree Song," the threat will sting all the worse.
She's never mentioned again in any of the franchise's movies. Keep reading to see how the book handles Lucy Gray's disappearance, theories on what happened to the singer, and whether or not we could ever see more of her story.
In the book, readers find out that Lucy Gray (Rachel Zegler) was the original writer of 'The Hanging Tree', penning the song after witnessing the murder of a man named Arlo Chance, who is hanged at the tree where the executions take place. She's later asked not to perform it.
How old was Jennifer Lawrence when she filmed Hunger Games?
When Jennifer Lawrence was cast as Katniss Everdeen, the actress was 20 years old. This was older than the teenage character that she portrayed, but there was a sense of maturity needed for the role. However, this also means working on the age of Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games movies can be tricky.
Jennifer Lawrence recently said she'd be down to revisit her Hunger Games character Katniss Everdeen, but according to a producer, the chances are... slim. "If Suzanne has something to say, then she'll write a book about it. Honestly, as much as I love Katniss, I think her story is complete.
Does Lucy Gray survive? In the book and the movie, Lucy Gray's fate is never confirmed. It's possible that she could have been wounded or even killed by a bullet, considering Coriolanus's frantic firing at the last location she had presumably been at.
Highbottom even developed a grudge against Coriolanus Snow for his father's actions, maintaining a dislike of the boy throughout his years at the Academy.
Fan speculation that the two are related is tantalizing, especially following Lucy Gray's love affair with young Snow. "I've heard that fan theory often. But it's not true," says director Francis Lawrence.
First, Katniss becomes deaf in one ear halfway through the Games after she blows up the Careers supplies. This occurs while she is allied with Rue. Meanwhile, Peeta is stabbed in the thigh by Cato, and by the end of the Games, his leg is injured yet again by a Hunger Games Mutt.
The fact that he escapes death, even just momentarily, gives him a brief sense of getting away with some of what he's done, while his enemy Coin — who he himself has helped turn Katniss against — takes the heavily symbolic arrow. Snow laughs after Katniss killed Coin because he enjoys the irony of the situation.
Lucy's reasons behind singing the song are very different to Katniss Everdeen's. Lucy sang it for her lover, to perform, and as a message for escaping District 12. Katniss sang it as a fighter to spur on the rebellion, and her version of “The Hanging Tree” is much rawer to reflect this.
While they were walking away from District 12 making their escape, Coriolanus made a comment about having killed three people. Lucy Gray quickly did the math and realized that she had only known about two of them, and that Coriolanus had been lying to her, sowing doubt in her mind about him and their plan.
She is only told that Tigris used to be a stylist for the Hunger Games, like Cinna, and that Snow fired her himself. Over the years, possibly to deal with the pain caused by her cousin's sadistic rise to power, Tigris tattooed and surgically altered her appearance so much that she looked more feline than human.
Fans online who have read Songbirds & Snakes theorize that Lucy Gray and Katniss aren't directly related, but instead that Katniss is the granddaughter of Lucy Gray's cousin, Maude Ivory, who is introduced in the movie, too.
Is Lucy Gray Baird Related To Katniss Everdeen In Hunger Games? The Hunger Games franchise has never confirmed that Lucy Gray and Katniss are related, despite speculation. The ending of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes leaves open the possibility that Lucy Gray and Katniss are related.
Snow can't stand to see a young woman betray a young man's affection—his view of what happened 65 years ago. And so he takes out his old, festering wound on Katniss.
Snow is revealed to have been heavily influenced by the nihilistic and misanthropic ideologies of Dr. Gaul. He has no qualms about hurting or killing those he perceives as threats to his power, and is mentioned to have used poison on his political opponents.
