Jennifer Lawrence joked she wanted to strangle Hunger Games’ Rachel Zegler

Rachel Zegler has revealed that Jennifer Lawrence joked she wanted to strangle The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes star – but not for the reason you might think. 

In the early 2010s, Jennifer Lawrence’s turn as the lead character Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games franchise launched her to worldwide fame, making her the highest-paid acting heroine at the time. 

Despite ongoing rumors, the star recently confirmed that she’d not be returning to her role for new Hunger Games prequel movie The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Instead, the female lead Lucy Gray Baird is played by Rachel Zegler. 

In a recent interview, Zegler opened up about a previous meeting with Lawrence, who joked that she wanted to strangle the new star. 

Lawrence joked about strangling Hunger Games’ Zegler

Rachel Zegler appeared on a recent episode of The Kelly Clarkson Show, where she described meeting Jennifer Lawrence at this year’s Paris Fashion Week. 

In a clip of the pair posing for photos at the Dior show, Zegler can be seen laughing at something the Katniss star says. “In that clip, she’s [Lawrence] actually saying, ‘Let’s do another photo where I’m strangling you saying you’ll never take my part!’ And that’s exactly what I wanted from her.”

Prior to this, Zegler expressed her admiration for The Hunger Games actress. “We were at Paris Fashion Week for the Dior show only a couple weeks ago,” Zegler explained. “I didn’t want to be weird. I was just kind of psyching myself up to talk to her. She was so unbelievably kind.”

In response to the joke, Clarkson said: “I love that about her. She seems like the same onscreen and offscreen.” If you’ve seen No Hard Feelings, you will most likely agree with this sentiment – Lawrence likes to keep it real. 

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is in cinemas now. Read more about the movie below:

• The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes ending explained
• The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes cast & characters
• Hunger Games: How to watch Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes – Is it streaming?
• How Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes avoided R-rating in “brutal” story
• Why Hunger Games director was “anxious” about Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
• Hunger Games: Is Donald Sutherland in Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes?
• Hunger Games: Does the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes have a post-credits scene?
• Does the cannibalism happen in Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes?
• How long is The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes?
• Hunger Games: Is Jennifer Lawrence in Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes?