The announcement isn't a huge surprise.  Two weeks ago, the mini-major studio reportedly made an offer to Lawrence, the director behind I Am Legend, Water for Elephants, and Constantine.  Apparently Lawrence accepted the offer and the two parties spent the last few weeks ironing out a deal to bring him aboard officially. 

Well before The Hunger Games opened domestically to $152 million and went on to gross $602 million (and counting) globally, Lionsgate hired Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire and The Full Monty writer Simon Beaufoy to craft the Catching Fire screenplay.  He is said to have worked closely with Collins, who was looking for a very faithful adaptation of her novel.  Ross had planned on revising the script, but the schedule wouldn't allow him enough time to do so to his satisfaction.

Francis Lawrence will have to work quickly.  Jennifer Lawrence, who stars as Katniss Everdeen, is contractually obligated to reprise her role as Mystique in the X-Men: First Class sequel set to being production in January under director Matthew Vaughn.  So in order to meet the November 22, 2013 release, principal photography on Catching Fire has to commence well before then to film Lawrence's leading role.

Here's the official announcement from Lionsgate:

SANTA MONICA, CA (May 3, 2012) – LIONSGATE® (NYSE: LGF), a leading global entertainment company, announced today that Francis Lawrence has officially signed on to direct CATCHING FIRE, the sequel to THE HUNGER GAMES, based on the second in a series of books by Suzanne Collins that has 36 million copies in circulation in the US alone.  The announcement was made by Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group Co-Chairmen Patrick Wachsberger and Rob Friedman.

Lawrence, who is represented by CAA and 3 Arts Entertainment, has experience directing films that make him uniquely suited to handle the blend of character driven drama and high stakes action of CATCHING FIRE; among them are I AM LEGEND, CONSTANTINE, and WATER FOR ELEPHANTS.

"Lionsgate, the cast, and filmmakers are all thrilled to have Francis Lawrence come on board as director of Catching Fire. Suzanne's brilliant book is the intense story of the birth of the rebellion and Katniss' emotionally charged journey as she takes on the mantle of the Mockingjay, and we all think Francis is the perfect director to bring the story to life," said Erik Feig, Lionsgate's President Of Production.

"From the very beginning of this brilliant trilogy's journey from page to screen, our first priority has been to stay true to the heart and soul of Suzanne Collins' powerful stories. From my first conversation with Francis, I knew he would make a great partner for both me and Suzanne. His passion for Catching Fire and inspired ideas for a faithful adaptation make him the perfect director for this movie. I know this will be a wonderful collaboration and I cannot wait to get started," echoed producer Nina Jacobson.

Said Francis, "It is truly an honor and a privilege to bring Catching Fire, the second chapter of Suzanne's beloved trilogy, to the big screen. I fell in love with the characters, the themes and the world she created and this chapter opens all of these elements up in such a thrilling, emotional and surprising way. I can't wait to dive right into it and bring this chapter to life along with the truly superb cast and filmmakers involved."

Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth will reprise their roles as Katniss, Peeta and Gale, with Lenny Kravitz, Elizabeth Banks, Stanley Tucci, Donald Sutherland, Toby Jones, and Woody Harrelson also returning to their respective roles. The film will be produced by Jacobson's Color Force in tandem with producer Jon Kilik. Production is slated to begin this Fall, and the film will be released on November 22, 2013.

THE HUNGER GAMES has broken many box office records since it opened on March 23, 2012. It achieved the highest grossing opening weekend ever for any non-sequel film and the third biggest opening weekend in box office history. It has already grossed $373 million at the North American box office, ranking in the top 20 films of all time, and it recently crossed the $600 million mark in worldwide box office.