After becoming fodder for teenage fan fiction and obsession, starring as Peeta Mellark in The Hunger Games trilogy, Josh Hutcherson has somewhat faded out of many people's memories.

While his co-star, Jennifer Lawrence, has gone on to become a sought-after big-budget actor and Academy Award winner, Hutcherson's career has simmered along more quietly in the background. Since Hunger Games, he's starred in a handful of independent films before reappearing in studio fare like Five Nights at Freddy's and The Beekeeper. This year sees him take to the small screen for the HBO series I Love LA.

During all of this, he's also produced films and steadily maintains his interest in filmmaking, but only time will tell if he'll make a return to match his earlier fame and success with The Hunger Games, although he has expressed interest in returning to his role in future spin-offs.

But this more metered career seems to have suited him well and even tracks with his own ambitions since he was much younger. Speaking to Variety way back around the time of Bridge to Terabithia, Hutcherson was quizzed on his role model, to which he simply stated, "Jake Gyllenhaal", explaining, "He chose projects not based on potential box office but for the most diverse characters and stories. That's how I want to go about my career."

And it is true, Gyllenhaal's career has always straddled the commercial and independent worlds with much deftness. Born into an acting family, he could have always had his pick of blockbuster affairs, but he made his own way by starring in plenty of beloved indie films like Donny Darko and Brokeback Mountain instead.

It seems the industry has been trying to fit him into the conventional mould for years, starting with The Day After Tomorrow, Prince of Persia and Love & Other Drugs, yet it never seemed to quite fit, and he never strayed from his indie beginnings. While he has since been inducted into the MCU, he's never given himself over entirely.

Hutcherson really began his career in the opposite way, first breaking out with a blockbuster trilogy, but he seems to be doing his best to follow this indie trajectory, which has his heart. OK, maybe his independent films haven't had quite the same prestige or critical success as Gyllenhaal's, yet, but he's nonetheless dedicated to trying, and Rachel Sennott, the creator, director, and lead in I Love LA, is, after all, an indie darling. He is also set to star in two more upcoming indie films, although it is a shame that one is directed by somewhat disgraced actor and filmmaker James Franco, with whom he has unfortunately been a long-term collaborator.

We will have to wait and see whether Hutcherson will live up to the dream heights of his younger self, and while he's only got 11 years to catch up to Gyllenhaal, that can be a long time in showbiz. So, here's hoping he keeps on his track and makes the right choices.