Josh Hutcherson Talks About the Letdowns He Faced After ‘The Hunger Games’

Josh Hutcherson says he learned some hard lessons about Hollywood after his years in “The Hunger Games.” Speaking on Jesse Tyler Ferguson’s “Dinner’s On Me” podcast, the actor looked back on how different his career felt once the hit franchise was behind him.

He said he grew up working steadily and didn’t face many setbacks early on, which made the sudden quiet that followed feel even sharper.

Hutcherson said he “knew only success” when he was younger. He explained that acting felt simple for a long time, and he rarely dealt with rejection.

He said the industry made him feel like he had reached a major milestone after starring in the films. According to him, big projects and well-known co-stars created the idea that he had fully arrived. But he said that feeling did not last.

He shared that as soon as the spotlight moved on, the offers slowed down. Hutcherson said he hit a point in his mid-20s where he felt “disappointment, failure [and] rejection” for the first time. He described long stretches where he waited for calls that never came, tried out for roles without getting them and struggled to adjust after years of steady work. He said it felt strange because from childhood to early adulthood, auditions usually turned into jobs for him.

Hutcherson first played Peeta in the 2012 release of “The Hunger Games,” which later grew into a four-film series that ended in 2015. In recent years, he has appeared in new projects like “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2,” “The Beekeeper,” and HBO’s “I Love L.A.”

In a separate interview with Variety, he said he would gladly return to the franchise. He said, “I would love to be back on set with Francis, with Jen, with Liam, with Woody. It would not take any convincing at all. I’d be there in a heartbeat.”

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