Suzanne Collins gave her readers a huge gift in returning to the world of The Hunger Games series, the first three books of which she wrote in 2008, 2009 and 2010, for the prequel story of one Haymitch Abernathy.
Haymitch, portrayed by Woody Harrelson in the quartet of films based on Collins’ original book trilogy, was Katniss Everdeen’s (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta Mellark’s (Josh Hutcherson) mentor for their two Hunger Games — the 74th and 75th.
For everything we know about the film adaptation of Hunger Game: Sunrise on the Reaping, read on:
When does the The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping film come out?
The film will arrive in theaters November 20, 2026.
Has the Sunrise on the Reaping film started production yet?
The film is still in early rounds of casting.
Who will play Haymitch Abernathy in The Sunrise on the Reaping movie?
Joseph Zada has been cast in the main role of Haymitch for the film. Zada will soon appear in another highly anticipated book adaptation, the television series We Were Liars coming to Prime Video this June. In that show, he plays Johnny Sinclair.
Deadline exclusively reported Zada’s casting alongside the actress who will play Haymitch’s love interest, Lenore Dove Baird.
Who else is in the cast of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping film?
Whitney Peak will portray Lenore Dove Baird, Haymitch’s girl and a descendant of the Covey, the nomadic group of performers whom Collins expanded upon in her first prequel story, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak
Hugh Stewart/Kate Whyte
Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), was a member of the Covey.
Deadline also exclusively broke the news of McKenna Grace’s casting as Maysilee Donner, another District 12 tribute, in the upcoming film.
Plutarch Heavensbee (portrayed by the late Philip Seymour-Hoffman in Catching Fire and Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2) will be played by Jesse Plemons, Deadline first reported.
Kelvin Harrison Jr. will portray Beetee Latier, who was originally played by Jeffrey Wright in Catching Fire and both parts of Mockingjay. Deadline exclusively reported that Maya Hawke has also joined the film as Wiress, originally portrayed by Amanda Plummer in Catching Fire and both parts of Mockingjay. Wiress won her Hunger Games in a mirrored arena, and she mentors the four District 12 tributes in Collins’ book. Lili Taylor will portray Mags, formerly played by Lynn Cohen in Catching Fire (2013). Mags hails from District 4, and she also mentors the District 12 tributes in Haymitch’s Hunger Games.
Lord Voldemort himself Ralph Fiennes will take on another big villain — President Snow — who was portrayed in the first four films by the late Donald Sutherland and in the prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes about Snow’s backstory, by Tom Blythe.
Ben Wang has been cast as Wyatt Callow, the other male tribute in the second Quarter Quell. Elle Fanning has been confirmed for the role of a younger Effie Trinket, portrayed by Elizabeth Banks in the original four films.
THR has exclusively reported that Molly McCann is set to play Louella, while Iona Bell will portray her Capitol-assigned lookalike Lou Lou.
Deadline broke the news that Glenn Close will play Drusilla Sickle, cold escort to the District 12 tributes and a sort of predecessor to Elizabeth Banks’ Effie Trinket. Deadline also exclusively reported Billy Porter’s casting as Magno Stift, Drusilla’s estranged husband and the uninspired designer for District 12’s tributes much like Lenny Kravitz’s Cinna in the original trilogy of films.
Deadline also first reported Jhaleil Swaby’s casting as Panache, one of the arrogant and aggressive career tributes from District 1 in the second Quarter Quell.
What is The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping about?
The prequel story focuses on Haymitch’s Hunger Games. Obviously since he was around to mentor Katniss and Peeta in their first and (unfortunately) second set of games, he was a victor of his own games, but that did not make them any more gruesome, for his games were the 50th set.
Every 25 years, the capitol of Panem, the dystopian nation in which these stories take place, reinforces what is called the Quarter Quell, meaning a special wrinkle or rule is added to the Hunger Games before The Reaping ceremony, in which tribute names are drawn.
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The wrinkle of Haymitch’s games was that each district was required to send double the amount of tributes that year, so four competitors from each district doubled the amount of players in the games — making it a whopping 48 versus the normal 24.
For those new to the universe entirely, each District of Panem — there are 12 — is forced to send two tributes each into the Hunger Games, a barbaric tradition that pits these pairs of usually children together in an arena to fight until the death until only one remains. Collins has spoken of the inspiration as gladiator fights and Greek mythology. The two tributes, a boy and a girl, are selected in a Reaping process which involves slips of paper with names on them in a bowl that a Capitol representative pulls from.
In District 12, specifically, where Katniss, Peeta, Haymitch AND Lucy Gray Baird are from, candidates can opt for extra slips of paper with their names on them to get more food or supplies, because the coal-mining district is a poor one.
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Who else is behind the Sunrise on the Reaping film?
Francis Lawrence, who directed The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as well as Catching Fire and both Mockingjay films, will return to helm this prequel story, penned by Billy Ray, who wrote the script for the first original film’s adaptation.
