Critically-acclaimed and Emmy Award-winning writer Danny Strong has been signed to write the screenplay for the final entry in the popular Hunger Games film franchise, Mockingjay .
Joss Whedon fans will always remember Danny Strong for his stint on TV’s cult-hit Buffy the Vampire Slayer , as the meek and nerdy Sunnydale student Jonathan Levinson who went on to become part of season six’s big bad “The Trio,” but the actor has actually become a bankable writer for film and television, having crafted the screenplays for HBO’s Recount and Game Change , the latter of which earned him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or a Dramatic Special.
His latest gig? Laying the foundation for the two-part Hunger Games finale Mockingjay , set to premiere in November of 2014.
The material of Suzanne Collins’ Hunger Games novels will mark a slightly lighter and younger entry into Strong’s normally adult-oriented repertoire, which upcoming projects The Butler and The Lost Symbol .
Variety broke the story, though studios have not yet confirmed Strong’s involvement.
The Hunger Games grossed $685 million worldwide since opening in March. Its sequel, Catching Fire , will be directed by Francis Lawrence from a script by Simon Beaufoy. It is set for release on November 22, 2013.
Do you think that Danny Strong will be a good choice for the Mockingjay adaptation? Also, are you getting tired of film adaptations of books splitting the last act into two parts? I know I am, but I haven’t yet decided on whether to blame the studios in what amounts to an obvious money-grab or the authors themselves for cramming all of the good stuff into their last novel and making it practically impossible to adapt in one film.
