Jennifer Lawrence credits Liam Hemsworth for 'toughening her up'

Jennifer Lawrence was surprised to find a lasting friendship with her The Hunger Games co-star Liam Hemsworth, and credits the Australian actor with "toughening" her up.

The stars wrapped up nearly four years of filming on the blockbuster franchise this year (14), and the Oscar winner reveals she formed an unexpected and strong bond with the Aussie hunk.

When asked by Nylon magazine about her time working on the franchise, Lawrence confessed, "I guess the thing that surprised me is that I would never expect to ever have a man this good looking ever be my best friend. I just would never assume those things could happen, but he is.

"He's (Hemsworth) the most wonderful, lovable, family-oriented, sweet, hilarious, amazing guy. He actually taught me how to be fair and to stand up for myself. It's my biggest weakness: negotiating. I'm a wimp about standing up for myself and Liam is always fair. He's always on time, he's always doing his job, and he's good about making sure that things stay fair.

"He's teaching me to toughen up a little bit. That was important, I need that."

Lawrence is adamant the job changed her life because she has walked away with two very good friends in Hemsworth and their co-star Josh Hutcherson, adding, "If all I had was this friendship with Josh and Liam - if that's all I ever got from this - I would consider it a blessing. Our lives changed together and we had each other."