Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson are returning to the world of Panem to reprise their roles as Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark from the original Hunger Games films for the prequel, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, multiple outlets reported.
Lionsgate will release the new film, which is adapted from author Suzanne Collins's dystopian novel of the same name, in theaters on Nov. 20, 2026.
Sunrise on the Reaping is set 24 years before Katniss and Peeta stepped onto the deadly field as reluctant tributes representing District 12. Haymitch Abernathy (Woody Harrelson), who was the sole surviving victor of previous Hunger Games from District 12, served as a mentor for Katniss and Peeta.
The story of Sunrise focuses on 16-year-old Haymitch, portrayed by Joseph Zada, as he fights to survive his own Hunger Games — all while refusing to bend the knee to the ruthless Capitol, which selects twice the number of tributes. Haymitch and 47 other children are sent into the deadly arena.
While no specifics have been released about Lawrence and Hutcherson’s roles in the upcoming movie, Collins’s Sunrise on the Reaping novel has a flash-forward scene with a grown Katniss and Peeta, where Haymitch recounts his experience in the Hunger Games to them.
Hutcherson told Variety in November, “I would love to be back on set with [director] Francis [Lawrence], with Jen, with Liam, with Woody [Harrelson],” the star said. “It would not take any convincing at all. I’d be there in a heartbeat.”
Sunrise on the Reaping is the sixth movie in the Hunger Games franchise and comes after the 2023 adaptation of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which starred Tom Blyth as a young President Snow and Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird, a singer forced to compete in the Hunger Games.
Lionsgate dropped a star-studded teaser for the new movie back in November, including Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird, Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner, Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee, Ralph Fiennes as President Snow, Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket and Glenn Close as Drusilla Sickle.
LATEST POSTS
- 1
As juries turn against social media for harming kids, Big Tech's invincibility starts to show cracks - 2
JFK's granddaughter reveals terminal cancer diagnosis, criticizes cousin RFK Jr. - 3
NASA's Perseverance Mars rover could break the record for miles driven on another planet - 4
Rick Steves Doesn't Want You Overlooking This Food Spot While In France - 5
ByHeart sued over recalled formula by parents of infants sickened with botulism
Israeli Chief of Staff declares new border with Gaza Strip
Far-right leader Le Pen to attend Brigitte Bardot's funeral
Australia to offer businesses $693 million in cheap loans to ease fuel cost pressure
‘Dying of thirst’: Inside Gaza’s al-Mawasi water crisis
Investigate Business Mastercard Choices for Better Rewards and Rewards
8 key takeaways from Savannah Guthrie's 'Today' interview on the disappearance of her mother
Figure out What Shift Differentials Mean for Your General Attendant Compensation
Wedding trip Objections in the US
Agios Pharma shares jump as US FDA expands approval for its blood disorder drug












