Although it isn't like that with most of her roles. "It's funny, we develop these characters and a few months later we never see them again," she says. "I guess I'm used to that. But I didn't really feel it so much character-wise at the end of Hunger Games, because these movies have been my life for so many years."

Elizabeth Banks and Woody Harrelson once again star with Jennifer

Approaching the final days of shooting left a mark on Lawrence. "I feel like I had two final endings with Katniss," she says. "There was the one when we wrapped the film in Berlin, when everyone was there and I said goodbye to everyone in the movie. And then I had a last scene, about a year later, with my nephews, which was so special. They played my children in the scene that I shot. It was amazing closure to this character who I've loved for so many years."

Filming those final moments was intense for Lawrence and her costars Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth. "On the last day it was so emotional, and we kind of couldn't let go of each other," she says. "We were kind of freaked out that something was ending. And then a week later we were hanging out at Liam's house. We were like, 'Oh, okay, so now we can just be friends.'" and with the saga coming to an end with the release of Mockingjay Part 2, she's beginning to see the story's true importance. "I feel the impact of being a part of such a huge movie that does so much for so many people," Lawrence says. "It would be impossible not to. And I think that this character is so overwhelmingly supportive of women. I think if you ever become aware of that, it takes away from it a little bit. It's the movie and the characters, and they have their own life. It's like your avatar self. And this character is remarkable! I think she's the greatest female character ever, so I wasn't too mad at that." While making the Hunger Games movies, Lawrence kept up a busy pace of other roles, Including three acclaimed films by David O. Russell (winning an Oscar for her role in Silver Linings Playbook and being nominated for American Hustle). "I just tried to keep working," she observes, "so that people could see other characters and other things that I could do, instead of taking vacation time. Now I'm aging like a President!"

And she feels profoundly changed by the experience of playing Katniss. "I don't feel like I'm being dragged by anything anymore," Lawrence says. "I feel more in control. I'm calmer. I know that there's no point to feeling anxious all day, so I try not to. I'm still scared, but it's about different things. I'm so scared to say anything now. I can see every negative way that people can take it, and I don't want to sound like I'm complaining. 'Oh, she's so conceited now. Oh, she's so jaded now!" It probably comes from Googling myself! If it were up to me I would not talk, I would just act."

Watch the trailer for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2 here: