‘It came out wrong’: Jennifer Lawrence clarifies remark about female-led action movies after backlash

Actor appeared to suggest that ‘nobody had ever put a woman in the lead of an action movie’ before ‘Hunger Games’

Jennifer Lawrence has clarified comments she made earlier this week about female-led action movies.

The Don’t Look Up star had been criticised for appearing to suggest that 2012’s The Hunger Games was the first action movie to star a woman.

“I remember when I was doing Hunger Games, nobody had ever put a woman in the lead of an action movie, because it wouldn’t work, we were told,” she said, while speaking to Viola Davis as part of Variety’s “Actors on Actors” series.

“Girls and boys can both identify with a male lead, but boys cannot identify with a female lead.”

Lawrence’s remarks were called out on social media, with many people citing examples of female-led action films from decades before The Hunger Games’ release.

Lawrence addressed her remarks to The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday, saying: “That’s certainly not what I meant to say at all. I know that I am not the only woman who has ever led an action film.

“What I meant to emphasize was how good it feels. And I meant that with Viola — to blow past these old myths that you hear about … about the chatter that you would hear around that kind of thing. But it was my blunder and it came out wrong. I had nerves talking to a living legend.”

Lawrence also discussed the ways in which interview quotes can be misconstrued by the press.

“One time I was quoted saying that Donald Trump was responsible for hurricanes. I felt that one was ridiculous, that it was so stupid I didn’t need to comment,” she said. “But this one, I was like, ‘I think I want to clarify.’”

In the “Actors on Actors” interview, Lawrence also opened up about the conversations she had had after being cast in The Hunger Games concerning her body and weight loss.