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Haymitch Abernathy is a fictional side character of The Hunger Games trilogy, written and first published in 2008 by American author Suzanne Collins. He was the victor of the 50th Hunger Games at age 16, 24 years before the events of the first book, and is played by Woody Harrelson in the movie adaptations; The Hunger Games, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2.

Haymitch is from District 12, a district that specialises in coal-mining, and is the smallest, poorest district in the fictional nation of Panem. Haymitch makes his first appearance in The Hunger Games as a mentor for Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, originally treating the pair with contempt, but eventually becoming their biggest advocate in the games.

Origins
The Hunger Games trilogy is based largely off the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. In the story, seven boys and seven girls from Athens are sent to Crete every year as a tribute to be thrown into a labyrinth and devoured by the Minotaur, continuing in a repetitive cycle until Theseus kills the Minotaur, saving future generations from being reaped. Collins, who was a huge fan of Greek and Roman mythology from an early age, decided to write a spin off of the myth, and create an updated version of the Roman Gladiator Games. Collins also characterized the novels with the fear and anxiety she experienced when her father was fighting in the Vietnam War.

In the novels, Haymitch is characterized as a 'paunchy, alcohol-loving, handsome middle-aged man'. He comes from The Seam and is described as having similar physical characteristics to Katniss and Gale: dark hair and olive skin; in the Hunger Games movies, he is portrayed with blond straight hair and blue eyes. When he was only 16 years old, Haymitch was reaped for the second quarter quell, where four tributes were selected from each district instead of the regular two. He became an ally to a girl named Maysilee Donner, who happened to be the original owner of the Mockingjay pin that would later become a symbol for Katniss, but was later forced to watch his friend die. During the games, he found a cliff at the edge of the arena that concealed a force field, which ricocheted anything that was thrown against it. During the finale of the games, Haymitch positioned himself by the edge of the forcefield to face the only remaining opponent; a female tribute from District 1. Due to the fact that she was a career tribute, and overall much stronger than Haymitch, she was favoured to win the games. However, his strategy was to wait until she threw her weapon at him, when he would duck and the force field would fling the weapon back at her, effectively killing her. His plan was successful, and he was named the champion of the 50th hunger games. Within two weeks of his victory, Haymitch's mother, younger brother, and girlfriend were all killed by President Snow as punishment for Haymitch using the force field to his advantage. He would then become an example of what happens to anyone who would try to defy the Capitol.

Following his victory, Haymitch spiralled into depression, and soon became an alcoholic. As the only remaining survivor from District 12 (one of only two to have ever won from District 12), Haymitch was forced to mentor all future tributes and watch them die, which consumed him with guilt, and eventually caused him to give up, no longer offering help to tributes. He spent most of his time drowning his feelings with alcohol and openly flouting the dignity of the games. Originally, he treats Katniss and Peeta with contempt and sarcasm, refusing any effort to help them. It's only after Katniss confronts him that he is stirred from his stupor, and becomes the pairs' greatest advocate, impressed by their determination.

In the book Catching Fire, the liquor supply in District 12 runs out, causing Haymitch to suffer badly from alcohol withdrawal. Katniss and Peeta are left to coax him back to health and get him more liquor. During this period, Katniss begins to develop a true affection and respect for him.

In Mockingjay, Haymitch is forced to go through detox in District 13, as they do not permit the consumption of alcohol. During the vote to decide whether the final Hunger Games will use the Capitol children, Haymitch votes yes, understanding Katniss's decision to make President Coin think she is on her side. After this, he continues to serve as a mentor to Katniss and Peeta. However, he never truly repairs his relationship with either of them and resumes his drinking after the war ends. Haymitch and Katniss, despite nearly always working towards the same goals, are usually hostile towards each other because they have similarly stubborn and confrontational personalities.

Name
The last name Abernathy was inspired by Ralph Abernathy, a revolutionary leader in the Civil Rights movement.

The Hunger Games
The character of Haymitch is first introduced at the reaping, just after Katniss volunteers to take the place of her sister, Primrose. He staggers across the stage to throw an arm around her, admitting that he likes her because she has "lots of spunk", then taunting the Capitol by screaming into the cameras that she has more than them. Following this, he plummets off the stage and knocks himself unconscious, causing medics to take him away on a stretcher.

Haymitch skips the first meal on the train to the Capitol in favour of a nap, much to the relief of Effie Trinket, who later admits that "Your mentor has a lot to learn about presentation. A lot about televised behavior." At which point, Haymitch enters, disgruntled about missing his supper, and proceeds to vomit on the carpet and fall into his own mess, much to the amusement of Katniss and Peeta. Effie leaves the room and the tributes move to help Haymitch up, and carry him back to his apartment, where they throw him in his bathtub and set the shower on him. Peeta takes over, and allows Katniss head back to her own room and avoid stripping their mentor down.

Haymitch attends breakfast the next morning, face puffy and red from the previous day, and tells Katniss to sit. At this point, Katniss decides she detests Haymitch, especially after she asks him for advice and he laughs in her face, telling her "Here's some advice. Stay alive." Peeta tells Haymitch off, explaining that "That's very funny, only not to us." Haymitch responds to this by punching Peeta in the jaw, knocking him from his chair. When he turns to reach for a bottle of alcohol, Katniss drives a knife into the table between his hand and the bottle, impressing him that he got a pair of fighters this year. He takes this opportunity to scope the duo, learning their strengths and weaknesses, and ultimately deciding to help them as best as he can, claiming "I'll make a deal with you. You don't interfere with my drinking, and I'll stay sober enough to help you." He advises the tributes to not argue with the stylists when they arrive at the Capitol; even though the games aren't a beauty contest, the best looking tributes pull more sponsors.

Later on, Haymitch explains to the pair that he will have to start mentoring them separately, an offer that they both turn down, claiming that neither of them have any secret skills that they wish to keep from the other. The two go back and forth, telling Haymitch about the skills of the other tribute, which turns into an argument about who would have a better chance at winning, both thinking that the victory would go to the other. Haymitch allows the scene to play out, eventually offering some words of wisdom that although both have decent skills that may help them fight, there is no guarantee that their weapons of choice will be availiable in the arena. He suggests that both tributes spread out their skills into survival, learning how to trap and so forth. He also comes up with a plan to bring in more sponsors, ordering the tributes to stick together throughout the lead up to the games and to appear admirable towards one another. Although Katniss is initially unhappy with this plan, she takes the advice and helps Peeta in the Training Centre. This time together creates a bond between them.

After the tributes' individual skill showcases in the gymnasium, Katniss is concerned that she may be marked down for shooting an arrow into an apple in the mouth of a pig up on the balcony where the Gamemakers were gathered. Haymitch has no such concerns, and actually finds the whole situation hilarious, telling her that "it serves them right. It's their job to pay attention to you. And just because you come from District Twelve is no excuse to ignore you." Katniss is given a score of 11 out of 12, surprising everyone in the room except for Haymitch, who tells her that the Gamemakers must have been impressed by her temper. Unfortunately, this score causes Peeta to request to be coached separately, making Katniss feel betrayed by her friend.

Haymitch works hard the next day, trying to decide how to present Katniss, aware that her upcoming interview will be the pivotal point for any potential sponsors whilst she is in the games. This turns out to be a difficult task, as Katniss is not a naturally delightful person, claiming that she has 2about as much charm as a dead slug." A few hours of trying to create a personality for her, Haymitch gives up and directs her to just answer the questions and to try not to let the audience know how openly she despises them.

During the interviews, Peeta makes an admission on camera that he is secretly in love with Katniss. This enrages her, and when he returns backstage, she tries to start a fight with him. Haymitch breaks up the fight, explaining that Peeta has made her look desirable, something that she could never do on her own. He further suggests that she rolls with the story, playing up to the image of star crossed lovers in the hope that it may get her extra sponsors.

Katniss struggles to find water to drink during the games, and paranoia sets in, thinking that Haymitch is purposefully preventing her sponsors from sending her water, but ultimately pulls herself from her stupor, understanding that he probably hasn't sent it because she's close to a water source. A few hours of searching and she finds it, gulping down as much as her stomach can take. She takes a nap shortly after and wakes to a wall of fire that the Gamemakers have created due to her being too close to the edge of the arena. Their plan is to draw her back towards other tributes, but a fireball hits her right calf as she attempts to escape the blaze, badly burning her. Later on whilst she is hiding in a tree from the careers, sawing at a branch with a wasps nest attached. She cannot detach the branch before it gets dark, so she temporarily gives up and goes back to her sleeping bag where she finds a parachute. Upon opening it, she realises that Haymitch has sent her a pot of ointment for her wound. She thanks him, realising that he must have worked overtime to get several sponsors to contribute towards the tiny pot.

Later, upon hearing the news that the rules have changed so that two tributes may emerge victorious if they are from the same District, Katniss sets off to find Peeta. She finds him already wounded, and rolls him into a nearby stream to wash off his camouflage and checks his injury. It's deeply inflamed and oozing with blood and pus, and smells of festering flesh. They manage to retreat to a cave where Katniss watches over Peeta, eventually kissing him to calm him down. Haymitch sends them a pot of broth, shooting the message to Katniss that she needs to work harder at appearing to be in love if she wants more than soup. She takes this instruction and plays up the act of star crossed lovers, acting to the cameras. The ruse works, and they are rewarded with a medicine drop at the cornucopia. Katniss fights her way to the medicine, emerging victorious and runs back to Peeta to inject him with the medicine. A deeper, more passionat kiss commences, and Haymitch drops them a feast of fresh rolls, goat cheese, apples, and a tureen of lamb stew on wild rice, impressed by her acting skills. Both tributes are grateful to Haymitch, and tease him in front of the cameras, aware that he's been on the scene for so long that the audience members will love the exchange at his expense.

During the finale, Katniss kills the only remaining tribute, leaving her and Peeta under the impression that they have won. It's at this point that the Gamemakers rescind their offer of two victors, ordering the pair to fight to the death. They refuse, and hold poisoned berries up to their lips, causing the Gamemakers to panic and call their bluff, declaring the two of them the victors of the 74th hunger games.

During her time in the hospital post-games, the Gamemakers decide they wish to alter Katniss's appearance surgically. Haymitch argues with them over this, and ultimately comes to a compromise where only her breasts are padded. On the lead up to her final interview, Haymitch offers Katniss a hug. When she accepts, he clutches her in an embrace and whispers in her ear, warning her that the Capitol is furious with her for the stunt her and Peeta pulled in the arena. He orders her to go with the story that they were so madly in love that they weren't responsible for their own actions. During this, it slips out that Peeta was never pretending to be in love with her.

Catching Fire
Haymitch has spent most of the past year alone in his house, drunk. He is re-introduced to us when Katniss lets herself into his house to wake him up and get him sober in time for Tour Day. He refuses to wake, so Katniss throws a basin of ice cold water over him, waking him instantly and causing him to wave a knife around frantically. He berates Katniss for nearly giving him pneumonia, but she shrugs this off, explaining that if he wanted to be babied, he should have asked Peeta to wake him up instead. Peeta enters at this point, initiating a cold conversation between him and Katniss; Haymitch picks up on this, telling the two that they need to warm up to each other quickly if they are going to keep up their ruse of being in love when the cameras arrive.

Once the catch up interviews are over, and the team are packed onto the train for the tour, Katniss slips away to Haymitch's quarters to talk to him. Katniss confides in Haymitch, telling him about the meeting she had with President Snow before the interview, and the threats he had made to her if she didn't convince him that she was completely and madly in love with Peeta. She asks him to help her get through the trip, but he waves her off, explaining that it's not just for the trip. Even once the trip is over, Peeta and Katniss will be pulled out to showcase for the games every year from then on, as the pair of them would now be mentors for future District 12 tributes. Katniss understands this for what it is, she must live the rest of her life 'happily' with Peeta.

During their first stop along the tour, at District 11, Peeta gives the dead tributes' families a cut of their own winnings from the games, and Katniss thanks both Thresh's and Rue's families, telling them that she would never have survived without their help in the arena. This creates a reaction from someone in the crowd, whistling the tune that Rue used to signal Katniss in the games, and using the District 12 salute. The rest of the District follows him, saluting Katniss and Peeta, but this causes the old man in thee crowd to be killed by Peacekeepers, and the champions are dragged back onto the train where Haymitch pulls the pair of them aside and forces Katniss to tell Peeta what she told him about President Snow the previous day. She does, and Peeta berates both Haymitch and Katniss, telling them to stop hiding secrets from him before more people are killed due to their actions. Haymitch promises Peeta that he will be fully informed of every decision from then on. Later that evening, Katniss comes up with an idea for a public proposal between the two. Peeta agrees, but skulks off to his quarters shortly after. Haymitch stops Katniss from following him, explaining that although Peeta wanted to marry her, he also wanted it to be real.

Back in District 12, Katniss walks Peeta to the square where he is supposed to be meeting his parents for dinner, but they come across Gale, tied to a pole, where a Peacekeeper stands behind him with a whip. Katniss runs between the two to stop the whipping, but takes the full force of it across her face. At this point, Haymitch steps in to diffuse the situation, berating the Peacekeeper for ruining her appearance, saying "She's got a photo shoot next week modelling wedding dresses. What am I supposed to tell her stylist?" The Peacekeeper shrugs this off, claiming it was her own fault for getting in the way. Haymitch snarls back, claiming "I don't care if she blew up the blasted Justice Building! Look at her cheek! Think that will be camera ready in a week?" He threatens to call the Capitol, and the Peacekeeper asks what business it is of her anyway. Peeta steps in to help, telling the Peacekeeper that "He's her cousin. And she's my fiance. So if you want to get to him, expect to go through both of us." Another Peacekeeper steps in and tells the man with the whip that the proper number of lashes for a first time offender has been dispensed, causing him to stand down and allow the trio to take Gale away for medical attention. Haymitch jumps into action, ordering Katniss to collect snow to place on Gale's wounds as he and Peeta take him to Katniss's mother. Haymitch consoles Katniss, telling her that there "Used to be a lot of whipping before Cray. She's the one we took them to."

A few days later, once the storm has died down, Katniss drags Haymitch and Peeta aside to let them know that she wants to start an uprising. Haymitch waves her off, claiming that he has too much to do what with her wedding coming up. Katniss protests, but he hushes her, telling her that her plan won't work and trudges off to find some alcohol, leaving Katniss to rethink the flaws in her plan.

Later, once the announcement that existing victors will be reaped for the third quarter quell has been made, Katniss runs to Haymitch, already aware that as the only female victor, she will be going back into the arena. He scoffs at the sight of her, aware that she wants him to take Peeta's place if he is reaped, but she shrugs him off, claiming she's there only to drink and that maybe Haymitch should be the one to join her in the arena, telling him that "You hate life, anyway." He agrees, mentioning that since he tried to save her last time, maybe it's Peeta's turn to be saved. Ultimately, he agrees to take Peeta's place if he's reaped, but both of them know that if Haymitch is chosen, they can do nothing to stop Peeta from volunteering. With this knowledge, Katniss makes Haymitch promise that if Peeta joins her in the games, he must do everything in his power to keep him alive this time, instead of her.

Peeta finds out that Katniss has started drinking with Haymitch, so takes it upon himself to pour all of the liquor in Haymitch's house down the drain, and bribe other District members to not sell any to either of them. Haymitch reacts poorly to this news and takes a swipe at him with his knife, which Peeta dodges, but this also angers Katniss and the pair get into a heated argument, eventually ending with Peeta storming out, slamming the door behind him. The three of them later begin their training, preparing themselves for the reaping.

On the day of the reaping, Haymitch's name is chosen, and Peeta volunteers himself.

At the Capitol, Haymitch sets to work mentoring the tributes, giving them two rules to stick to; "One, stay in love. And two, make some friends," explaining that just having Peeta as an ally won't help her this time around. Katniss argues that the other tributes are already friends, so asks why she should bother. Haymitch explains that she is a desirable ally due to her fighting skills and popularity with the crowd. Katniss ultimately agrees to try, but makes no promises on the knowledge that she isn't particularly likeable in person.

During their time in the training centre, Katniss decides that she wants to partner up with Wiress and Beetee from District 3, and Mags from District 4. She tells Haymitch this, which doesn't surprise him, but he tells her that "I'll tell everybody you're still making up your mind."

After the tributes' individual showcases, Peeta admits that he painted a picture of Rue in her bed of flowers with dye. Haymitch asks him what he was trying to accomplish by this, which Peeta responds he wanted the Gamemakers to be held accountable, if even for a moment. This sends Effie into a panic, and she cries out that this way of thinking is forbidden, and in doing so he has only caused more trouble for him and Katniss. Haymitch agrees with Effie, but Katniss is moved by Peeta's actions and admits to hanging a mannequin painted to look like Seneca Crane, the previous years' Head Gamemaker. She also tells Haymitch that she has changed her mind, refusing to accept help from any allies in the arena. Haymitch agrees, telling her that he "won't be responsible for you killing off any of my friends with your stupidity." They finish their meals in silence and head to the television to watch the tribute scores. Everyone is surprised when both Katniss and Peeta pull a perfect twelve. Katniss asks why they would do that when they were so clearly open about their hatred towards the Gamemakers, and Haymitch responds "So that the others will have no choice but to target you, go to bed. I can't stand to look at either one of you."

The next day, Haymitch and Effie are scheduled to train the two tributes, but they are presented with a note from Effie saying that, given their recent tour, both her and Haymitch agreed that they can handle themselves adequately in public, and the coaching sessions have been cancelled. This doesn't phase either of them, and they head off to spend the day with each other on the roof.

Once their interviews with Caesar are done, and Peeta drops his fake bombshell of Katniss being pregnant, they head backstage to find only Haymitch has been allowed to stay behind. He gives the pair a last piece of advice to "Stay alive." As he sends them off to bed, he stops Katniss, reminding her to remember who the enemy is while she's in the games.

In the arena, Finnick pulls Katniss aside, claiming that the two are allies. He shows her the bracelet he's wearing, the one that Effie originally gave to Haymitch as a team token. Katniss accepts this as a sign from Haymitch to trust Finnick, though she is still angered by the order. She later warms up to the idea once she is made aware that Finnick knows what her and Haymitch know about the plan to keep Peeta alive.

After searching for drinkable water for a full day, Katniss, Peeta, Finnick and Mags are fatally dehydrated, but Haymitch comes to the rescue once again, dropping a parachute with a spile inside.

After the escape from the arena, Katniss wakes up in a medbay inside a hovercraft. She picks up a nearby hypodermic needle as a weapon and creeps down a hallway towards some voices. The voices belong to Haymitch, Finnick and Plutarch Heavensby. Upon hearing Haymitch speak, she barges into the room and tries to attack him with the needle. He disarms her and calms her down enough to explain their plan to break her and her allies out of the arena. He tells her that she and Peeta weren't told because as soon as the forcefield was broken, they would have been the first ones that the Capitol would try to capture, and the less they knew, the better. Katniss asks where Peeta is, and Haymitch drops his gaze, admitting that "He was picked up by the Capitol along with Johanna and Enobaria." Upon hearing this, Katniss flies into a rage, lunging across the table to claw at his face with her fingernails. She is dragged away and restrained once again.

Mockingjay
Haymitch spends most of the first part of Mockingjay in District 13's hospital, recovering from alcohol withdrawals and the damage that Katniss did to his eye on the hovercraft in Catching Fire. He is forced to detox as District 13 strictly prohibits any production or consumption of intoxicating beverages. Katniss notes that even rubbing alcohol is kept under lock and key in the medbay. She sympathises with the struggle he must be going through at first, but shrugs it off when she remembers how he had deceived her and Peeta.

Later on in the book, when Katniss is recording her first message for the revolution, Haymitch is re-introduced, his voice crackles over the intercom, laughing, and he says "And that, my friends, is how a revolution dies." Hearing his voice angers Katniss, and she leaves the studio completely, refusing to acknowledge him at all. The next day, Katniss is forced into a room with her team, which includes Haymitch. This is the first time they have been in a room together since she tried to claw his eyes out, and she makes a point to avoid looking at him directly. Haymitch starts the meeting by playing the footage they already have, and proceeds to tear it apart, claiming that sticking Katniss in a studio is no way to win a war. He asks the room for examples of moments where they were truly inspired by Katniss, and they come to the conclusion that she is most effective when nobody is telling her what to do or say. He suggests that they throw her into combat and keep the cameras rolling, much to Katniss's delight.

Once the meeting is adjourned, Haymitch asks Katniss to stay behind for a quick word. He says that they will have to start working together closely once again, so tells her to get what she wants off her chest. Katniss berates Haymitch for breaking his promise, and rescuing her instead of Peeta. He acknowledges his mistake, but points out that Peeta is still alive, they are still in the game, and he is still her mentor. They agree to put the past behind them and attempt to work together to take down the Capitol and rescue Peeta and Johanna.

After the attack on District 13, Katniss finds herself too distracted to film more propaganda as she has just found out that President Snow is using Peeta to break her. In this moment, the only person she wants to embrace is Haymitch, as he knows how it feels to love Peeta too. She reaches out for him and he hugs her, patting her on the back for comfort. He listens to her plight, eventually offering her an insight into the real plan in action; getting Peeta out of the Capitol. Katniss begs Haymitch to let her help in some way, so he talks to Plutarch and puts a plan together; Katniss and Finnick will be aired live in the Capitol as a distraction while the extraction team search for Peeta.

Whilst Katniss is in District 2, Haymitch stays behind in the hovercraft to instruct and prompt her through an earpiece. He asks her questions and tells her to talk about what she is seeing to the camera, still mentoring her. Katniss is shot and ends up in the hospital, and it is decided against her wishes that Katniss will no longer be going to the Capitol to fight. She ignores this instruction and sneaks onto a hovercraft heading to the Capitol drop zone.

We then don't see Haymitch until the end of the book, when the Capitol has been over-run. He is back to drinking, and we see him at a meeting called by President Coin. She offers a vote on whether one more Hunger Games should be held, with the Capitol children being reaped as revenge for all the lives that had been taken. At this point, Katniss is aware that Coin was the one that launched the attack on their own medics, ultimately killing her sister Primrose. She votes yes in order to get on Coins side and eventually kill her. Haymitch understands what Katniss is planning, and votes yes in solidarity.

Personality
Haymitch starts out as being a stubborn, temperamental, frequently surly and overall unlikeable character. He is often curt and sarcastic towards Peeta and Katniss, but over the course of the hunger games, becomes a true mentor and friend to them both.

Skills
When we are introduced to Haymitch for the first time, we don't get to see him in his prime, and his victory is called into question by Katniss and Peeta in the books due to his drunken foolishness. But Haymitch wasn't always like that; in his prime, Haymitch was highly skilled with knives and incredibly intelligent. His survival instincts and quick wit were what helped him win the games back at the early age of 16. These skills later came into use when mentoring Katniss and Peeta, and trying to keep them alive in the arena by sweet talking potential sponsors.

Physical appearance
Haymitch is described in the books as being paunchy, with curly dark hair and light grey eyes, similar to the characters of Katniss and Gale. However, in the movie adaptation, he is slim built, with straight blonde hair and light blue eyes.

Critical Reception
Haymitch Abernathy was recieved well by readers upon release of The Hunger Games trilogy, with Digital Spy journalist, Emma Dibdin claiming that "Haymitch is the real hero of The Hunger Games" and "the trilogy's true male lead". Sage Negron from CBR.com said "both Haymitch and Katniss were key figures in the rebellion against the Capitol".