The Hunger Games franchise lives on. After Suzanne Collins' first three books following Katniss Everdeen became worldwide best-sellers and their movie adaptations box office hits, the prequel story The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes received the same double treatment, focusing on a young Coriolanus Snow and the 10th Hunger Games. The history of Panem will continue to be told in books and on the big screen with this latest prequel, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.
The book, Sunrise on the Reaping, is the fifth from Collins in the franchise and is now available to buy. But when can Hunger Games fans expect the movie, what's it about and who's in it?
We'll be updating this post with any information that comes out for the movie, but right now here is everything we know about The Hunger Games: Sunrise of the Reaping.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping release date
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will premiere in movie theaters in North America on November 20, 2026. It is unclear at this time if the UK will have a different release date.
The movie will arrive about 19 months after the book is released, and it arrives three years after the most recent movie in the franchise, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise of the Reaping plot
This is what has been shared about the plot of The Hunger Games: Sunrise of the Reaping:
"The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will revisit the world of Panem 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games, starting on the morning of the reaping of the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell."
Fans of the series will remember that the Second Quarter Quell were the games that Haymitch Abernathy, Katniss' mentor in the original trilogy, won. So the story is likely to feature him heavily.
We can also guess that Coriolanus Snow will once again be a main character, continuing to follow his rise as we did in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping cast
The first two confirmed castings for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping have been announced, with Deadline reporting that the role of a young Haymitch Abernathy, the role played by Woody Harrelson in the original Hunger Games movies, will be played by Joseph Zada (Invisible Boys), while the role of Haymitch's girlfriend in the story Lenore Dove Bird is being played by Whitney Peak (Gossip Girl).
Meanwhile Variety has confirmed that McKenna Grace (Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire) is playing the role of Maysilee Donner, the other tribute from District 12.
One other bit of casting news that has picked up steam, though is not official at this time, is Elle Fanning being eyed to play Effie Trinket, the role played by Elizabeth Banks in the original Hunger Games franchise.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping trailer
We don't have a trailer with an actual footage from the movie, but a teaser that reveals the movie's logo and reaffirms its release date is now available, and features one of Harrelson's iconic lines from the original movies. Watch it directly below:
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping director
A director for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping has not been made official, but it was shared in the announcement of the movie that Francis Lawrence was in talks to direct. Lawrence has directed each Hunger Games movie since The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, so it would bring a nice bit of continuity if he were to return for this next addition.
Outside of the Hunger Games movies, Lawrence has directed Constantine (2005), I Am Legend (2007), Water for Elephants (2011), Red Sparrow (2018) and Slumberland (2022).
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