The Reaping continues as District 11 finds its tributes. As reported by Entertainment Weekly, newcomers Dayo Okeniyi and Amandla Stenberg will play Thresh and Rue, respectively.
Much like Katniss and Peeta’s home, District 12, District 11 is a rather poor region of Panem with a focus on agriculture. Rue is one of the youngest tributes participating in the 74th Hunger Games, merely 12-years-old. She catches Katniss’ eye not only for the sympathy her youthfulness warrants, but also because she reminds Katniss a great deal of her younger sister, Prim. As for Thresh, he’s quite the opposite of Rue; Katniss describes him as “one of the giants, probably six and a half feet tall and built like an ox.”
In terms of physicality alone, both Okeniyi and Stenberg fit the bill, but in terms of talent, it’s nearly impossible to tell what they have to offer for their resumes are rather bare. Stenberg has a film called Colombiana due out on September 2nd in which she plays a young Zoe Saldana while Okeniyi’s completed a short film titled “Eyes to See,” but unfortunately he’s nowhere to be found in the film’s trailer. He also plays a character named Bro in an upcoming piece called Slew Hampshire, so hopefully that one will hit sooner rather than later so we can get a better sense of what he’s capable of.
In general, it seems as though Lionsgate is casting in pairs. Katniss appropriately received sole attention, but then we got both Peeta and Gale followed by both Rue and Thresh. Should the studio go district by district, the more notable pairings we have to look forward to are District 1’s Marvel and Glimmer and District 2’s Cato and Clove. District 5’s Foxface is also a tribute to keep an eye out for.
By Perri Nemiroff
