Sam Claflin signs on to Hunger Games: Catching Fire

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire has landed another big player, having cast up-and-coming Brit actor Sam Claflin in the role of Finnick Odair - a part that Robert Pattinson was briefly rumoured to be considering .

Catching Fire ’s muscular dreamboat, Odair hails from District 4 and is an arrogant and attractive former winner of the Games.

He teams up with Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson), but theirs is an uneasy alliance.

Claflin had better brush up on his trident skills – while Katniss is a keen archer, Odair’s weapon of choice is a trident and a net.

Previously, Claflin appeared in the fourth Pirates Of The Caribbean film On Stranger Tides , as well as this year’s Snow White & The Huntsman as Prince William.

He seemed half-forgotten in those films, though, eclipsed by bigger-name stars, so it’ll be great to see what he’s made of in a pivotal role like Odair. He’s certainly got the looks to pull it off…

Previously, Philip Seymour Hoffman chatted about his role in the sequel , while Jena Malone was in talks to play Johanna Mason .

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire starts shooting soon and heads into cinemas on 22 November 2013.

Josh Winning has worn a lot of hats over the years. Contributing Editor at Total Film, writer for SFX, and senior film writer at the Radio Times. Josh has also penned a novel about mysteries and monsters, is the co-host of a movie podcast, and has a library of pretty phenomenal stories from visiting some of the biggest TV and film sets in the world. He would also like you to know that he "lives for cat videos..." Don't we all, Josh. Don't we all.