Sneak attacks, back-stabbing, theft and deception ? all necessary to survive in the world of The Hunger Games. But when it bleeds over into reality, as it did with the recent theft of hundreds of celebrity nude photos from private online accounts, things have gone too far, says star Josh Hutcherson.
?My reaction was anger, initially, and truly disappointment in society as a whole,? Hutcherson said of the nude photo hack over the Labour Day weekend, which resulted in the theft of hundreds of images from dozens of celebrities, most notably his Hunger Games co-star and friend Jennifer Lawrence.
?It?s not something that any of us signed up for,? Hutcherson said. ?When Jen started acting she was 12 years old. I started when I was nine. People say if you?re an actor, you have to think about being in the public eye. No, that?s not true.?
Hutcherson is an affable, easygoing guy, but his eyes darken when he talks about the celebrity photo hack, and how it affected Lawrence and dozens of other actresses, singers and models.
?You have a certain public recognition and whatnot. But it?s not about having your private life literally looked into and stolen from you,? he said. ?Becoming an actor shouldn?t mean that you have to deal with being stalked.?
Hutcherson loves his job and loved working on The Hunger Games, but maintains that the price of fame shouldn?t include invasions of privacy.
?When we?re doing our job, yeah we?re in the public eye. When we go to press events, yeah we?re in the public eye. Because you choose to go to it,? he said. ?The fact that we don?t have a choice sometimes? That?s completely illegal, and it?s completely unfair.?
Although he?s fast friends with Lawrence off set, he hasn?t talked to her yet about the photo hack. Because, appropriately enough, he respects her privacy.
?I didn?t really want to bring it up to her, it?s a personal thing that she?s going through, and if she wants to talk to me, she?ll talk to me about it,? he said. ?It?s hard. I feel horrible for it all.?
