Producers behind The Hunger Games: Mockingjay found their Annie Cresta … which means Finnick Odair has found his love interest and eventual soul mate.
Lionsgate, according to a release, revealed that Australian actress Stef Dawson has been selected to play Cresta in the two-part Mockingjay adaptation, which will be directed by Francis Lawrence. Cresta is the District 4 victor from the 70th Hunger Games. It is mentioned that, at some point prior to the Cornucopia battle, Annie watched her Hunger Games partner be beheaded. The result is that she’s more than a little insane. She has a tenency to cover her ears and close her eyes and inopportune moments. She laughs hysterically when nothing funny has happened. She managed to survive the 70th Hunger Games because – SPOILERS, if you still haven’t read Suzanne Collins’ novels – she’s an outstanding swimmer from a fishing village, and she swam through a tsunami caused by the Gamemakers … a flood that claimed most of the other tributes in her competition.
The character is first brought up in Catching Fire, though with that movie wrapped and prepping for a November release, it’s clear that producers decided to wait until Mockingjay to introduce Annie. Still, she’s a pivotal character. As the Hunger Games Wiki reveals, Annie goes on to become Finnick’s wife, and the mother of his child. I won’t spoil the fate of Annie, Finnick, or the child. Let’s leave that for you to discover.
Dawson, meanwhile, is a relative unknown in the States who started out logging time on TV shows like Out of the Blue and Swift an Shift Couriers before moving on to bit parts in indie films. She has several credits on her resume for 2013, including two shorts and the feature film Shadow of the Monarch, though clearly, nothing compares to landing a choice role in the Hunger Games sequels. If she’s good, this role will put her on the map.
Here’s the show reel Dawson’s management team put together. Get to know the young actress:
And here is the latest trailer for Catching Fire, which will be the next available chapter in the Hunger Games saga. We’ll have to wait until Nov. 21, 2014 to see Dawson in the first Mockingjay. If you’re familiar with her talents, what do you think of the casting?
