Josh Hutcherson, famous for bringing Peeta Mellark to life in The Hunger Games, opened up the rough patch he hit after the franchise wrapped. Even with early stardom, Hutcherson admitted he wasn’t ready for the rejection, the career dead-ends, and disappointment.
Josh Hutcherson discusses disappointment, failure, and rejection
On the latest Dinner’s On Me podcast with Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Josh Hutcherson opened up about his early Hollywood grind and the smack of reality he faced after The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.
“I didn’t learn rejection ever. I knew only success, from the age 9 to, like, 24.” Hutcherson continued, “The kingdom is yours… It’s very complicated. So I tasted my first feeling of disappointment, failure, rejection, probably when I was 24 or so, 25.”
Hutcherson then talked about the tough transition from starring alongside Jennifer Lawrence and Philip Seymour Hoffman in billion-dollar films to facing a dry spell after The Hunger Games. He explained that instead of landing roles easily, he went through a frustrating string of auditions with no callbacks or offers.
Despite his previous success, he realized that getting cast wasn’t guaranteed. Auditioning no longer meant he was certain to book the part, a harsh reality he had to face. “It’s always worked. I always got cast.’ Of course, there are things that you don’t get cast in, but I had only known that the chances are, if I was auditioning, [I] was going to book it. That is just not the reality at all,” Hutcherson admitted.
Before Peeta Mallark catapulted him to mega-fame, Hutcherson had already appeared in hits like Bridge to Terebithia, The Kids Are Alright, and RV with Robin Williams. That early success reinforced his confidence, which made the post-Hunger Games slowdown even more difficult and disappointing. Between 2012 and 2015, he was working on multiple projects a year, but from 2018 to 2023, he only did five films total.
Even after the slow patch, Hutcherson is back on the rise. He’s headlining HBO’s comedy I Love L.A. and is also in Five Nights at Freddy’s 2.
Originally reported by Rishabh Shandilya on ComingSoon.net.
