When I first speculated on who would be (and should be) cast in The Hunger Games, I have to admit I couldn’t muster much excitement over who would be picked to play Mrs. Everdeen, the mentally gone mama to the book’s heroine Katniss and her sweet li’l sister Prim. In the first book, Mama Everdeen is basically a shell of a woman, long-consumed by grief over the death of her husband in a tragic mining accident years before. So while fans of the series hopefully suggested the likes of Robin Wright and Laura Linney, I shrugged thinking such esteemed actresses wouldn’t take on what’s sure to be a small and underwritten role in this first film. But I have to admit, my hopes for the role have changed now that THR has revealed Paula Malcomson has signed on to play the emotionally frail mother, thereby rounding out the casting of the Everdeen clan.
Sci-fi fans may remember Malcomson as steely surgeon Amanda Graystone from the short-lived Battlestar Galactica spin-off Caprica, but to she’ll always be Trixie to me. As a devoted fan of the woefully long-gone HBO western series Deadwood, I have a high opinion of Malcomson, who was initially cast as in the small role of a sneering whore in the David Milch drama. As the story goes, Malcomson was told her character would likely be killed by the end of the first season, but her performances proved so poignant and gripping that Milch chose to expand her role rather than cut it short. She ultimately rose to become one of the main characters on the series, and definitely one of the most persistently interesting.
It’s this kind of moxie and skill I am eager to brought to The Hunger Games. With Malcomson playing Mrs. Everdeen, I’m confident she’ll expertly lay the groundwork that will lead to the character’s transformation over the course of the series from walking dead to vibrant nurturer and stalwart in the community. She’s a fantastic actress with an undeniable edge to her warmth. I could not be more excited about this casting news.
As a reminder: Jennifer Lawrence will be starring as Katniss, with Willow Shields playing sister Prim, Josh Hutcherson as her Hunger Games partner Peeta, and Liam Hemsworth as her first crush Gale. The leads are in training for production, which is set to begin soon. The Hunger Games aims to hit theaters March 23, 2012.
How about you? What do you think of Paula Malcomson as Mrs. Everdeen?