Jennifer Lawrence clarifies comment about female-led action films: 'It came out wrong'
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Jennifer Lawrence is clearing the air surrounding her recent remarks about female-led action films.
In a recent Variety interview with Viola Davis, the Causeway star said that "nobody had ever put a woman in the lead of an action movie" prior to her appearance as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games. The comment quickly sparked backlash online from movie buffs who noted films like The Terminator, Foxy Brown, and Tomb Raider were all released decades before the 2012 dystopian film series.
Now, Lawrence is clarifying her thoughts, telling The Hollywood Reporter her initial comment was a "blunder" and "certainly not what I meant to say at all."
Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images Jennifer Lawrence
"I know that I am not the only woman who has ever led an action film," she told the outlet. "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."
During their Variety conversation, Lawrence said that "we were told" The Hunger Games films — which have since spawned a forthcoming prequel — wouldn't work because "girls and boys can both identify with a male lead, but boys cannot identify with a female lead."
It's because of that initial forewarning, Lawrence said, that she was delighted to see Davis' action flick The Woman King positively received both critically and at the box office.
"It just makes me so happy every single time I see a movie come out that just blows through every single one of those beliefs and proves that it is just a lie to keep certain people out of the movies, to keep certain people in the same positions that they've always been in," she continued. "It's just amazing to watch it happen and watch you at the helm."
This isn't the first time, Lawrence told The Hollywood Reporter, that her comments have been woefully taken out of context.
"One time I was quoted saying that Donald Trump was responsible for hurricanes," she said. "I felt that one was ridiculous, that it was so stupid I didn't need to comment. But this one, I was like, 'I think I want to clarify.'"
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