Jennifer Lawrence clarifies remarks saying 'Hunger Games' was first female-led action movie

Jennifer Lawrence is walking back controversial comments she made about being the first female lead in an action movie in “The Hunger Games.”

“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 girls and boys can both identify with a male lead, but boys cannot identify with a female lead,” she told Viola Davis in a video interview for Variety’s "Actors on Actors" series.

Lawrence, who, like Davis, is an Academy Award winner, has since changed her tune.

“That’s certainly not what I meant to say at all,” she told The Hollywood Reporter. “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’s initial comments sparked outrage online, with many people pointing out the other women who headlined action movies before “The Hunger Games,” including Pam Grier in her 1970s Blaxploitation movies, Linda Hamilton ("The Terminator" film series), Sigourney Weaver (the "Alien" franchise), Milla Jovovich (the "Resident Evil" franchise), Uma Thurman and Angelina Jolie ("Lara Croft" movies).

Lawrence can currently be seen in the drama "Causeway," now streaming on Apple TV+.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com