What Happens to Peeta Mellark in The Hunger Games - And Why It's Important (2024)

The Hunger Games is filled with suffering characters, but few went through as much as the series' secondary protagonist, Peeta Mellark. A humble baker's son chosen by an act of fate as "Tribute" for the 74th Hunger Games, Peeta represents his home District alongside the franchise's other main character. Of all Katniss Everdeen's friends and allies, no one understands what she goes through quite as well as he does. In many ways, the two share a destiny, and neither of them can reach the end of their journey without the other.

Peeta's survival is important, not just to Katniss but to the story itself. The Hunger Games stresses hope and survival as weapons against tyranny, with what happened to Peeta being a visceral example of the triumph of the human will. Peeta Mellark reminds Katniss of that when she needs it, as well as proving his love for her through the most gruesome tortures. He embodies the story's central message almost as much as Katniss does.

Updated by Timothy Blake Donohoo on December 25, 2023: The Hunger Games franchise continues to be popular among multiple generations, both as a book series and as films. The renewed interest in the brand comes after the release of the movie The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which adapted the 2020 prequel novel. Now, many fans and newcomers are looking back at the main series' events, namely what happened to prominent characters such as Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.

Peeta Mellark Before The Hunger Games

Played by actor Josh Hutcherson in the movies, Peeta Mellark debuted (alongside Katniss Everdeen) in the first Hunger Games book and film adaptation. Before the story officially started, he and Katniss had only ever interacted with each other once. This happened when Peeta and Katniss were 11 years old, with Peeta intentionally burning some of his father's bread in order to feed Katniss. The latter was starving, and since the incident resulted in Peeta being beaten by his father, Katniss felt that she owed the boy.

Nevertheless, the two never really spoke after that, with the later strong-willed Katniss being unable to face him. Growing up together in the derelict District 12, the two went to the same school and occasionally exchanged glances. Later, Peeta Mellark claimed to have had a crush on Katniss since they were young, but it's unknown if this was actually true or merely something said to rile up an audience. Sadly, this previous schoolboy crush was a far cry from what happened to Peeta in the Hunger Games.

Peeta Is One Of The Hunger Games' Great Lost Innocents

While Katniss volunteers to serve as Tribute as a replacement for her sister Prim, Peeta just has the bad luck of the draw, and everyone assumes he'll be killed quickly. He survives the Games, thanks largely to keeping his head, and he and Katniss actually manage to defy the "only one victor" rule through the ineptitude of the Games' manager. As Victors, they're forced to feign a romance to please the public, showcasing feelings that Peeta has, but Katniss doesn't. That forms its own kind of torture as they must dance to The Capitol's tune, right up until the moment they're placed in The Quarter Quell together. This harrowing situation for Peeta Mellark takes place during the events of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

The Capitol captures and tortures Peeta after Katniss escapes The Quarter Quell, and though he's rescued at the conclusion of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1, his character is almost irrevocably changed. Even Katniss was unprepared for what happened to Peeta in Mockingjay - Part 1, with the young man having been brainwashed to treat Katniss as an existential threat. Despite that, he overcomes his programming in the story's final acts, learning to love her again and seeing her respond genuinely at last. The saga ends with the two of them living peacefully in a post-war world and raising their children together.

It's worth noting that Peeta Mellark wasn't the only love interest for Katniss, as she was also seemingly being paired with her childhood friend Gale Hawthorne (played by Liam Hemsworth). These two had a relationship that was far different from what Peeta and Katniss had together. Likewise, Gale was instrumental in the counterattack against The Capitol. Sadly, this is what eventually drove the two close allies apart, with one of Gale's bombs being used at an unexpected time. This resulted in the death of Katniss' sister Primrose Everdeen, and whether she admitted it or not, it was clear that she blamed Gale for this happening. Realizing how his friend felt, Gale left District 12 and Katniss' life following the fall of The Capitol. This left her to embrace the love she felt for someone else who had always fought beside her throughout the Hunger Games.

Peeta's Survival And Love For Katniss Embody The Themes Of The Hunger Games

The romantic pairing in The Hunger Games says more about Katniss Everdeen than it does Peeta Mellark, who loves her from the beginning and never changes. She comes to share his love, with the two eventually getting married after what happened to Peeta in Mockingjay - Part 1. The two even have a family together, with the series' epilogue showcasing them as having a boy and a girl together. It's suggested in the text that it was Peeta who wanted children first, with Katniss only agreeing to this after the world of Panem had been sufficiently rebuilt.

Unfortunately, what happened to Peeta at the hands of The Capitol still affected him, with his extensive brainwashing making him see his wife as an enemy at certain points. Nevertheless, the two are able to carve out a peaceful life together, with the Hunger Games franchise ending with Katniss meditating on how miraculous their mutual survival is. Thus, she was able to finally find the peace that Peeta Mellark represented, as he had always possessed a greater sense of innocence than Katniss. Likewise, she now offered that same bedrock of tranquility to him following what happened to Peeta in Mockingjay, making their mutual arcs an example of poetic irony.

In that sense, Peeta not only becomes a symbol of what Katniss has been through but also provides someone in her life who truly understands. Their shared experiences are horrific, but they have each other to lean on as they process everything, and in the end, they are able to carve out a corner of the world where they can heal. Katniss needs that kind of support to bring closure to her own trauma, and Peeta — her fellow survivor — is the only one in the whole Hunger Games saga who can truly give it to her. It certifies their love for each other and brings comfort and wisdom in its wake.

The Hunger Games

The Hunger Games franchise shows a dystopian future where teens are forced to battle to the death for the amusem*nt of the wealthy. Everything changes when Katniss Everdeen volunteers in place of her sister, Primrose.

Created by

Suzanne Collins

First Film

The Hunger Games

Latest Film

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Cast

Jennifer Lawrence , Josh Hutcherson , Liam Hemsworth , Woody Harrelson , Elizabeth Banks , Amandla Stenberg , Rachel Zegler , Tom Blyth , Viola Davis