The Hunger Games Prequel Finally Gets the Update Fans Have Been Waiting For

On Friday, Variety announced that Lionsgate’s adaptation of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping has added two more to its ever-expanding cast. The outlet confirmed that Iris Apatow and Edvin Ryding have joined the cast of the highly anticipated prequel. Along with announcing the latest cast announcements, the outlet was able to confirm that production has finally commenced on The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The movie, which is the second prequel in the Hunger Games franchise, was penned by Billy Ray, based on the bestselling novel by Suzanne Collins. Francis Lawrence returns to the franchise to helm the film.

The novel Sunrise on the Reaping was released this past March and tells the story of young Haymitch. It takes place during the Quarter Quell, which features twice as many tributes as the games before it. Haymitch Abernathy is one of the tributes called for District 12, along with a friend who is like a sister to him, a compulsive oddsmaker, and the most stuck-up girl in the district. He feels he has been set up to fail, but soon finds there’s something within him desperate to win, a fight that he wants to see reverberate far beyond the deadly arena.

The cast of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping features an all-star cast including Ralph Fiennes as President Snow, Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket, Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner, Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee, Joseph Zada as Haymitch Abernathy, Ben Wang as Wyatt Callow, Maya Hawke as Wiress, Kieran Culkin as Caesar Flickerman, Lili Taylor as Mags Flanagan, Glenn Close as Drusilla Sickle, Jefferson White as Mr. McCoy, and Billy Porter as Magno Stift. Newcomers Iris Apatow and Edvin Ryding will play Proserpina and Vitus, two Capitol University students assigned to the prep team for the District 12 Tributes.

Along with directing The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, Lawrence recently directed the President Snow prequel, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. Prior to that, he directed The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2. The only Hunger Games movie not directed by Lawrence thus far has been the first movie, The Hunger Games, which was directed by Gary Ross.

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The Hunger Games franchise has been a massive success for Lionsgate since the first film premiered all the way back in March 2012. To date, the five films in the Hunger Games franchise have amassed over $3.3 billion at the worldwide box office. The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, which was released in November 2023, earned an impressive $348.4 million worldwide on a reported $100-million budget.

Apatow is next set to appear in the Hulu series Tell Me Lies, and most recently starred in Young Werther and Unstable. As for Ryding, he is best known for his role in the Netflix series, Young Royals. He also most recently appeared in 28 Years Later.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is slated to hit theaters on November 20, 2026.