‘Hunger Games’ Prequel Star Rachel Zegler Calls Jennifer Lawrence ‘Actual Mother’ at Fashion Show

The actresses, who play Lucy Gray Baird and Katniss Everdeen, respectively, looked gorgeous at Dior’s Paris Fashion Week show.

The odds are ever in their favor! The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes actress Rachel Zegler praised the franchise’s original star, Jennifer Lawrence, while the duo posed for a picture together during Paris Fashion Week. 

“She’s actual mother,” Rachel, 22, wrote across a video that she shared via her Instagram Stories on Tuesday, September 26. The clip featured the Snow White star and the Oscar winner, 33, smiling for a photo at the Dior fashion show earlier that day. In typical Jennifer fashion, she appeared to make a joke, making Rachel laugh as the cameras flashed. Both women looked stunning in their respective outfits. Jennifer rocked a white button-down blouse and black pants, whereas Rachel wore a long black and pink butterfly-embroidered dress. 

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a mother to many. a mother to Me pic.twitter.com/96ep8DaWIX

— rachel zegler (she/her/hers) (@rachelzegler) September 26, 2023

Rachel then followed up via X — previously known as Twitter — with the same video, writing, “A mother to many. A mother to me.” Fans quickly swarmed the comments section of the tweet to gush over Jennifer and Rachel’s meeting. 

“Katniss and Lucy are hanging out! We love to see it!” one social media user commented, referring to Jennifer’s character, Katniss Everdeen, from The Hunger Games movies and Rachel’s character, Lucy Gray Baird, from the 2023 prequel. The new film is set to hit theaters on Friday, November 17. 

Others also wondered what the two talked about, with one fan writing, “I expect you to tell us what you two chatted about.” 

Jennifer quickly rose to stardom in 2012 after starring in the first Hunger Games movie. Though she went on to lead countless films and win multiple accolades, the No Hard Feelings actress still looks back on her experience working on the young adult action movies. In June, Jennifer revealed that she would “totally” reprise her character if she was given the chance. 

“If Katniss could ever come back into my life — 100 percent,” the Kentucky native told Variety at the time. 

For Rachel’s part, the New Jersey native rose to prominence after starring in several high school stage productions. In 2019, she was cast out of 30,000 other actresses to play the role of Maria in Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation of West Side Story. 

Before she was cast in the upcoming movie of Suzanne Collins’ prequel, Rachel initially turned down the role, she revealed in an interview on the “Happy Sad Confused” podcast in June. 

“I had just gotten to London [to film Snow White], and I wanted to disappear because I was so far away from home for the first time ever,” she recalled. “And I was away from everybody that I knew and loved, and I said ‘no.’ I regretted it the minute I said it.”