Moody ‘Divergent’ Posters Arrive

Although we were unimpressed by the first trailer for Divergent, the latest teen novel adaptation to be headed for the big screens, we will admit that the aesthetic (though perhaps overly similar to The Hunger Games) was pretty interesting. And though they don’t reveal much, the first couple posters for the movie strike a similarly moody tone. Have a look:

The dystopian setting of Divergent features five factions, each representing a different virtue. Woodley’s character, Tris, is born into Abnegation (i.e. selflessness), but unlike most in her society, she fits not into one faction, but three. When she comes of age, Tris chooses to switch factions, leaving behind her family in the process. That second poster features Theo James, probably best known for 2012’s Underworld: Awakening. James plays a character simply named Four who becomes Tris’s mentor at her new faction, Dauntless.

Woodley is becoming a commodity in Hollywood, and distributor Summit Entertainment is certainly hoping she will provide the same sort of draw Jennifer Lawrence did as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games. Much like Lawrence, Woodley jumped onto the radar with a starring role in an Oscar-nominated indie film, starring alongside George Clooney in The Descendants. Divergent and its anticipated sequel films (the final book in the trilogy is to hit shelves next month) has the potential to make her a household name, as does her upcoming role as Mary Jane Watson in The Amazing Spider-Man 3 & 4. She was originally to appear in the first sequel, but competing storylines forced her out of next May’s Spider-Man feature.

Divergent is hoping to avoid the pitfalls of other teen adaptations like The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones and I Am Number Four, would-be franchise teen book adaptations which, at least for the time being, failed to draw sufficient audience interest to justify sequels. But as The Twilight Saga and The Hunger Games, among others, have proved, the potential margins are huge, and Divergent is looking to capitalize on a primed pump. It hits theaters March 21.