Jeffrey Wright - Jeffrey Wright To Play Beetee In ‘Hunger Games’ Sequel

Actor Jeffrey Wright has been cast as Beetee in the The Hunger Games sequel Catching Fire, Lionsgate announced on Friday (September 7, 2012).

Former ‘Monk’ star Tony Shalhoub was reportedly in consideration for the role, though it appears casting bosses were unconvinced by his suitability, opting instead for Wright, whose career best performance in HBO’s ‘Angels in America’ earned him both an Emmy and a Golden Globe in 2004. His ‘Catching Fire’ character Beetee is a technology-savvy former winner of the violent ‘Hunger Games’ from District 3; his expertise in electronics has earned him the nickname ‘Volts’. Wright joins an intriguing cast-list for the second instalment of the dystopian franchise, with Oscar winner Philip Seymour Hoffman recently signing on to play the wonderfully named Plutarch Heavensbee. Actress JEAN MALONE will play Johanna Mason, while the respected Amanda Plummer (Pulp Fiction’s Honey Bunny) plays Wiress. The new recruits will join original stars Jennifer Lawrence, JOSH HUCTHERSON and Liam Hemsworth when the movie begins shooting in the fall. It will hit theaters on November 22, 2013.

The first movie proved to a massive box-office success, taking $685 million worldwide, against a comparatively miniscule budget of $78 million.