Francis Lawrence Offered Job of Catching Fire Director

Francis Lawrence will direct Catching Fire!!

After a quick but fairly exhaustive search, Lionsgate has chosen Francis Lawrence has been offered the opportunity to direct the Hunger Games sequel Catching Fire.
Sources say that Lawrence will receive an official offer this afternoon. If he accepts and a deal can be worked out, he will replace Gary Ross, who directed the first installment of the hugely successful franchise.The hunt had been a fast and furious one, with the field narrowing down to Lawrence, the director ofI Am Legend and Water for Elephants, and Bennett Miller, the director of the acclaimed Brad Pitt baseball movie Moneyball. Both directors met with the studio today, according to sources, and Lionsgate executives have made their pick.

Here is what is going on with the screenplay:

One question that Lawrence’s hiring raises is that of the shape of the screenplay. Ross, who is a writer as much as he is a director, worked on the Hunger Games script and was planning on spending two months honing Fire, working on a script previously penned by Simon Beaufoy. The producers and new director can keep working with Beaufoy or hire new scribes to hammer out words.

Lionsgate has confirmed that they have offered him the job, but he has not accepted yet. Waiting....

Source: Hollywood Reporter