The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Lawrence Close Up - H 2013
LionsgateKatniss Everdeen was a hero at the 2013 box office, but The Hunger Games: Catching Fire didn’t earn one accolade some fans are now clamoring for: a nomination for best hero at the MTV Movie Awards.
An online petition to add Jennifer Lawrence‘s character to the category has attracted more than 17,000 signatures. Petition starter Sophie Azran is asking why no female characters were included in the category.
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“I love movies with strong female leads. I think it’s important for girls to see that, because sometimes it can be hard to see all of these guys always being the hero,” Azran tells The Hollywood Reporter.
MTV confirmed to THR that it does not set the nominees itself. Rather, the nominees are decided by an academy made up of industry voters. (For the actual show, fans vote on the winners.)
The nominees for the best hero category are Iron Man (Iron Man 3), Clark Kent (Man of Steel), Thor (Thor: The Dark World), Bilbo Baggins (The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug) and John Cale (White House Down).
Despite not making it into the best hero category, Catching Fire, which has grossed more than $864 million worldwide, is nominated in seven other categories, including movie of the year, best female performance (Lawrence), best male performance (Josh Hutcherson) and best onscreen transformation (Elizabeth Banks).
STORY: MTV Movie Awards Nominations Revealed
Azran, a film student at Emerson College in Boston, cites Frozen protagonists Elsa and Anna and Sandra Bullock‘s Gravity character as other strong female heroes from 2013 films, a trend she finds encouraging. Azran adds that she’s been touched by the response to the petition, with many people leaving comments of support.
“A lot of people write these heartfelt paragraphs about why Katniss is their hero,” she says. “It just means a lot to me.”
Conan O’Brien will host the MTV Movie Awards, which will be broadcast live from L.A. Live’s Nokia Theatre on April 13 at 9 p.m. PT/ET on MTV. Voting takes place at www.MovieAwards.MTV.com through April 12, while voting continues during the show for movie of the year.
