Mahershala Ali On ‘The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1,’ Jennifer Lawrence [VIDEO EXCLUSIVE]

Mahershala Ali, best known up until now for playing Remy on Netflix’s House of Cards, makes his first appearance in The Hunger Games franchise as Boggs in Mockingjay Part 1.

Mahershala Ali On ‘Mockingjay’

When The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 opens, Boggs is based in District 13 and is soon assigned to protect Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), who accepts the role of being the face of the revolution. In time, the two revolutionaries form a close bond that’s somewhere between father-daughter and allies.

“In the books he’s described as sort of a father figure for her. I think we’re able to capture this feeling of him being an ally, and an ally for all the right reasons,” Ali told uInterview exclusively. “He’s one of the people who don’t really want anything from Katniss, and I think that’s unique in comparison to her other relationships.”

Since Boggs has fewer shadows Katniss as she rallies the men and women of Panem to go up against The Capitol, Ali spent much of his time on The Hunger Games set with the Academy Award-winning Lawrence. More than anything, Ali was impressed with Lawrence’s ability to switch on and off between having a laugh on set and getting into an emotional scene.

“ Even on my first day on set I saw her playing and laughing around, and then they’d call action and I’d walk in the room and she was crying,” Ali revealed. “We did the take again, laughing and joking between takes, and then I walk in the room and she’s crying. Fifteen takes later and the same thing is happening.”

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1, which also stars Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth and Elizabeth Banks, hit theaters last weekend and is currently in wide release.