Bend Teen Archer Hits ‘Hunger Games’ Bullseye

The movie company Lionsgate has done it again with another blockbuster, this time scoring big with the movie “The Hunger Games,” and its teen heroine resonates with a Bend teen bowhunter who finds a positive reflection in her passion.

The film depicts a 16-year-old girl and her quest to win an unusual challenge in the futuristic country of Panem.

Katniss Everdeen, a bow-toting hunting master and main character, has given a new voice to many young women.

“Like in all the movies, the hunter is usually a fat, drunk guy,” said 15-year-old bowhunter Mikayla Lewis of Bend. “I think it’s really, really cool how Katniss is a female hunter. She is strong and not afraid to get her hands dirty to do what she needs to do.”

Like Everdeen, Lewis is an avid hunter, along with her two sisters.

“I remember the oldest daughter when she was not even 2 years old, walking out and looking at the deer I had just brought home,” said Gary Lewis, Mikayla’s father. “Then always looking forward to the time when she could do it herself.”

Mikayla picked up the skill of archery when she was only 2. She more recently became more active with a bow and arrow over the last several years.

The teen says she enjoyed reading the Hunger Games book series, and the new movie did not disappoint.

“I just really like how the main character is a female hunter like me,” Mikayla said, “just because hunting is generally portrayed as sort of a male thing.”

Over the weekend, The Hunger Games brought in $155 million — that’s the third largest opening weekend ever.The only films surpassing that are Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 and The Dark Knight.

Some analysts say The Hunger Games did so well due in part because it won’t face any heavyweight box office competitors in the coming weeks, and its appeal has drawn more than just young women to the theater.