Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson close to HUNGER GAMES roles

Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson are close to signing on for roles in the Gary Ross-directed adaptation The Hunger Games. Hemsworth is frontrunner for the role of Gale Hawthorne and Hutcherson for the role of Peeta Mellark. In the Suzanne Collins novels, Gale is the hunting partner of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), and Peeta Mellark is the baker's son chosen to accompany her as the district's entry into the deadly Hunger Games reality show competition. The two actors have been in contention since we first reported on the actors up for the roles. 

The Hunger Games takes place in the futuristic ruins of North America, which crumbled and was replaced by a Capitol and 12 districts. Each district is forced to supply 2 teenagers, between 12 and 18. They participate in The Hunger Games, a televised reality series that pits the contestants against one another in a battle to the death. The heroine is 16-year old Katniss Everdeen, a skilled hunter who’s adept with a bow and arrow. She replaces her younger sister, who was chosen in a lottery. She is joined by a baker's son who is also chosen from her dirt poor home district. 

What are your thoughts on this news? Do you think they are good for the part?