Woody Harrelson would keep the Hunger Games cast in stitches during filming, Elizabeth Banks has revealed.

The actress, who plays Effie Trinkett in the upcoming movie, said that her co-star would lighten the mood on set in between takes.

"Woody is a great partner in crime. He tells really off-colour jokes and is fantastically self-deprecating and fun to be around," she told MTV.com.

"I think whenever it's difficult, one of my favourite ways to deal with it is to joke around. We take the work seriously, but we try not to take ourselves too seriously."

The most harrowing and challenging scene to shoot was the Reaping, when two participants from each district are chosen to take part in The Hunger Games, a life or death battle to survive.

"The Reaping is amazing. It was a really remarkable scene to shoot. It was difficult to shoot under insane conditions, about 105 degrees the couple days we shot it. We had all these young kids there dropping like flies," she recalled.

"It was madness, and it's also the only time we spend in District 12."

Elizabeth - who currently stars in thriller Man On A Ledge - described the upcoming film, which opens on March 23, as "emotional".

"I'm excited to see the actual Games. It's very emotional," she continued.

"We really become very attached to the characters, even the bad guys of the book. We really are attached to everybody's journey, and so I'm really excited to see how that all plays out."