Filming on location in Germany and Poland without much green screen must have been an immersive experience. Can you share a moment when the realistic set design added to the intensity of the scenes, making you feel like you were truly in the Hunger Games?
Oh gosh I don’t even know where to start. The zoo enclosure was pretty crazy since we were rolling in mud and they had to let us out by removing like 3 of the bars on the cage. The train us tributes took to the capitol was real as well, and the cars were filled with hay so it really felt like we were delivered like barnyard animals. When you have sets like that it makes getting into the world and circumstances so much easier; it fully transports you.
The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes explores the complex relationship between Coriolanus Snow and Lucy Gray Baird. How do you interpret the dynamics of their “contentious” romance, especially considering Jessup’s perspective?
Me personally, I think Snow is full of shit. Or maybe he did love her in a way but was too selfish to love her fully. I definitely resonate with Jessup’s mistrust of Snow because, as evidenced many times in the movie, he tells everyone what they want to hear but only in an effort to preserve his own image. And while Lucy Gray tries to see the good in him, I think she ultimately came to the same conclusion.
From attending midnight premieres to starring in The Hunger Games prequel, your journey seems like a full circle. How did your love for the franchise, from the original books to the movies, influence your experience working on The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes?
Honestly, being a fan helped a lot! Obviously it added to my excitement and motivated me to do my best work, but also since I was already familiar with the world, diving into this didn’t feel too new or foreign to me. I came into it knowing all of the lore and Panem specific vocab so it felt easy to return to this world I knew so well. It allowed me more time to focus on learning Jessup as a person rather than learning the world he lived in.
When you found out you got the role as Jessup Diggs, you were on your way to visit your sister. Can you share the moment you told her, and what was her reaction to you being a part of one of your favorite franchises?
I had been keeping her updated about my audition process, and I was trying to keep it a secret for a bit but she ended up asking about it while we were hanging out. I told her and she started yelling. She just kept saying, “You’re gonna be in the Hunger Games?!” It was an awesome moment to share with her especially given the impact this franchise had on us growing up.
The prequel provides a raw and brutal look at Panem, 64 years before the original trilogy. How does this version of Panem differ, and what do you think fans, both new and old, will appreciate about this fresh perspective?
I think it’ll be a treat for the fans to see Panem and the Capitol before the glitz and glamour. Whereas in the original trilogy you’re watching the established institution get broken down, in our prequel, you’re watching them build this institution up – they’re still recovering from war and figuring things out. It’s like a Panem history lesson or text book in movie form. It’s a look at vintage Panem, like a period piece but in the future? And it’s portrayed beautifully though the set design and detailed costuming (Trish Summerville is the GOAT).