The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping

Less than a year after the premiere of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a brand-new installment in the franchise has been announced with the reveal of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Beginning with the 2008 publication of Suzanne Collins' dystopian YA novel, The Hunger Games, the series concerns the post-apocalyptic land of Panem. In this world, each district must send representatives to compete in the annual Hunger Games competition in which they must fight to the death against the teams from other districts.

Collins' original trilogy of Hunger Games novels was quickly adapted into a blockbuster film franchise starring Jennifer Lawrence, and they were tentpole films throughout the early 2010s. The most recent film in the series, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, took fans back over 60 years before the events of the first novel and chronicled the rise of Panem's notorious dictator, Coriolanus Snow. Now, Collins is returning to pen The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, another prequel novel that has already landed a film adaptation deal with Lionsgate.

Related When The New Hunger Games Book Is Set Compared To Katniss' Story And Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes Another Hunger Games novel is on the way, and its (highly requested) story takes place between Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and the 74th Games.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping Latest News

The Movie's Producer Clarifies Filming Rumors

Custom Image by Simone Ashmoore

She also mentioned that the book will be released "months before" filming begins, suggesting cameras won't start rolling until after March 2025.

Rumors have been swirling ever since the highly-anticipated prequel was first announced, and the latest news finds a producer clarifying filming rumors concerning Sunrise on the Reaping. Franchise producer Nina Jacobson took to X (formerly Twitter) to respond to a prevalent rumor that the movie is due to begin filming in January 2025. Taking a tongue-in-cheek approach, Jacobson dispelled the rumors by pointing out that the book won't even be released by the time January 2025 rolls around. She also mentioned that the book will be released "months before" filming begins, suggesting cameras won't start rolling until after March 2025.

The Hunger Games Return In 2026

Though it is a ways off, Lionsgate announced a release date on the same day that the company revealed they would be adapting Suzanne Collins' latest book. Coming slightly more than a year after the release of the book of the same name, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will debut in theaters on November 20, 2026. However, with a release date so far off, it's always possible that some shuffling can occur over the next few years that displaces it from its originally scheduled slot.

The novel of the same name is due to hit shelves on March 18, 2025.

Who Is Making The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping?

Familiar Faces Behind The Scenes

Custom Image by Yeider Chacon

Hunger Games Movie Release Year Rotten Tomatoes Score The Hunger Games 2012 84% The Hunger Games: Catching Fire 2013 90% The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 2014 69% The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 2015 69% The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes 2023 64%

While a cast is likely not going to be revealed for quite some time, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping does have a few familiar names behind the scenes. Obviously, the film is to be based on Collins' eponymous novel and she will likely have some small involvement with the script. However, it is confirmed that franchise director Francis Lawrence will once again return to helm the movie, and Lawrence has directed every Hunger Games title since 2013's Catching Fire. Producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will also be on hand to oversee the production once again.

What Is The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping About?

Another Prequel Is In Store

Close

the story will be set 40 years before the events of the first Hunger Games novel and will likely follow Haymitch Abernathy, who wins that year's Hunger Games.

Much like its immediate predecessor, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will be another prequel. This time, the story will be set 40 years before the events of the first Hunger Games novel and will likely follow Haymitch Abernathy, who wins that year's Hunger Games. The relative closeness to the original franchise opens the door for several of the series' adult characters to return in their younger forms, but more details won't be known until the novel is published in 2025.