Hollywood and all fans of film were shocked to learn of the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman on last Sunday. He was such an incredibly talented actor and definitely one of my favorites. I remember being very excited learning he would be apart of the Hunger Games film franchise and marveling at his deft performances over the years. His absence is hard to comprehend and I am not alone.
Lionsgate released a statement this week,
“Philip Seymour Hoffman was a singular talent and one of the most gifted actors of our generation. We’re very fortunate that he graced our Hunger Games family. Losing him in his prime is a tragedy, and we send our deepest condolences to Philip’s family.”
Many have wondered if Hoffman had finished filming for Mockingjay,
Mr. Hoffman, who played games-master-turned-rebel Plutarch Heavensbee, had finished shooting virtually all of his scenes for Part 1 save for one in which he did not play a significant role, the person said.
For Part 2, he had about a week left of shooting, including one scene that will have to be written with a different character taking the spot of Plutarch Heavensbee.
Because most of Mr. Hoffman’s scenes were complete, director Francis Lawrence and his team are said to be confident they can complete filming without the character or the films being substantially changed. (The Wall Street Journal)
A Lionsgate execute spoke with The Hollywood Reporter saying that Hoffman had one crucial scene Mockingjay Part 2 that will not be filmed.
“We’re all extraordinarily sad,” a Lionsgate executive tells The Hollywood Reporter. “But as it relates to production, it’s going to have no impact. Obviously, we’re going to have a couple of work-around issues but the movie will be creatively whole. His performances in both [remaining] movies will be up to the best of his craft. We feel it will be a good tribute to him.”
Asked to expand on the crucial scene that remains to be shot, this executive responded, “Why would I want to give people something to look for two years from now?” The final film in the series is set for release in November 2015.
A source with ties to the project said that with the exception of one major scene in the final film, “they seem to have plans that don’t seem very complicated” to complete both pictures without Hoffman. “You can do digital things, you can have conversations where you’re not focusing on him but the people he’s talking to,” this observer said.
Several of the HG and CF stars expressed their grief and shock via twitter (TheHob.org)
Entertainment Weekly is honoring the memory of Hoffman this week. (x)
Film critic Owen Gleiberman traces the arc of the Oscar-winning actor’s tragically curtailed career, exploring his ability, in role after role, to plumb his own depths to bring often deeply flawed characters to vivid life and to “lay bare the things that make people tick” — an emotionally wrenching process that clearly took a personal toll on the actor. We look back at Hoffman’s 10 most essential film performances — including his acclaimed work in movies like Capote, Doubt, and Boogie Nights, as well as lesser-known gems from throughout his career — and look ahead to the various projects he was working on at the time of his death, including the final installments in the Hunger Games franchise.
Director Brett Ratner, a fellow NYU film school student of Hoffman’s who later worked with the actor on the film Red Dragon, contributes a personal remembrance, while other friends and fellow actors and filmmakers offer their own tributes to Hoffman as both an artist and a man. “He was the warmest, most generous person and just overflowing with love and affection for his friends and family,” says actor Todd Louiso, a longtime friend of Hoffman’s who directed him in the 2002 film Love Liza. “I know the past two years have been really rough for him. To find out [about his death] doesn’t really compute to me. It just shows how strong that disease [of addiction] is.”
Rest in peace, Philip Seymour Hoffman. It was a gift to have known you.
