'Mockingjay' director: There's more President Coin in the film than the book

Julianne Moore is a big fan of the Hunger Games series, so much so that she directly approached Mockingjay – Part 1 director Francis Lawrence about securing the role of President Alma Coin, the tenacious leader of District 13 who leads the revolution against the Capitol.

“She actually sort of tracked us down and had an interest in the books through her kids,” Lawrence says.

The Golden Globe winner’s interest acted as an audition, he notes.

“She didn’t audition. Once we knew she wanted it, that was it—done,” Lawrence says, laughing. “I sat down with her, she had great ideas, we got along and that was it.”

President Coin—who becomes reluctant allies with Katniss Everdeen in the rebellion’s efforts to overthrow President Snow—was written by author Suzanne Collins through Katniss’s perspective as narrator; she is perceived as ambitious and egotistical. But with Moore’s involvement, Lawrence says, the gray-haired politician’s role in his two-part finale has expanded significantly beyond her portrayal in the bestselling Hunger Games series..

“There’s more of her in this than in the book, and because of that, there’s some development,” Lawrence says. “I think the character has developed into something pretty amazing. And Julianne was a big part of that.”

The Hunger Games:Mockingjay – Part 1 is slated for release on Nov. 21, 2014.

For more on Mockingjay – Part 1, pick up Entertainment Weekly’s Fall Movie Preview issue, on stands now.