Alan Ritchson, famed for his roles as Aquaman in “Smallville” and Jack Reacher in Prime Video’s “Reacher,” has a rich history with action-packed franchises. Besides portraying other heroes like Hawk in HBO Max’s “Titans” and Raphael in the “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” movies of the 2010s, Ritchson has ventured into the realm of antagonists. Notably, he starred as Gloss in “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire,” a District 1 victor and tribute re-reaped for another terrible round. Although his character ultimately perishes, Ritchson was unhappy with how his on-screen death was altered in post-production, feeling that it made his head movements appear somewhat comical.

In “The Hunger Games,” tributes from Districts 1, 2, and 4 are known as Careers, teens who are trained for the Games and see participation as an honor, with many volunteering for it. In the 75th Hunger Games featured in “Catching Fire,” tributes are picked from previous victors, forcing them to endure the brutal ordeal once more. Gloss, a tribute from District 1, initially stands a strong chance of winning again, but his hopes are dashed when Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) kills him.

During a 2025 interview with Wired, Alan Ritchson revealed his dissatisfaction with the changes to his character’s death scene in “Catching Fire.” Originally, an arrow was supposed to hit his face, and he performed accordingly. However, he feels that in post-production, it was toned down to an arrow to the chest, a change he didn’t anticipate. “I acted as if the arrow went to the face, but they later altered it to the chest, making my head snap back awkwardly,” he explained, mimicking the unfortunate motion. “It didn’t convey the way I imagined it would.”

Upon revisiting the scene in “Catching Fire,” viewers may notice editing efforts to downplay Gloss’s head movement during the arrow hit. As Katniss shoots, the camera angle switches from behind Gloss and then quickly returns to the front as his head seems to jerk, revealing the arrow embedded in his chest. Although subtle due to the rapid sequence, the movement of his chin can still be spotted, not aligning with Alan Ritchson’s original performance vision.