The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Adds Euphoria Star

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is the first film in the Hunger Games universe to be made since The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 was released in 2015, and the new movie's cast keeps getting more and more exciting. It was recently revealed that West Side Story star Rachel Zegler had been cast in the film as Lucy Gray Baird and now Euphoria fan-favorite Hunter Schafer is set to play Tigris Snow. 

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will follow 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow as he sees a chance for a change in fortune when he is chosen to be a mentor to Lucy Gray Baird, the girl tribute from the impoverished District 12. Tigris Snow is Coriolanus's cousin and confidante, "who advises him in everything – from his role as mentor to the core of his moral compass." The film will see the return of Francis Lawrence, who directed the final three installments in the Hunger Games film series. The role of Snow was played by Donald Sutherland in The Hunger Games films and will be played by Tom Blyth in the prequel. 

Last week also saw the news that Josh Andrés Rivera, who played Chino in West Side Story, has been added to The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as Sejanus Plinth, a close friend of Snow and the mentor to a tribute from District 2. Other cast members include Nick Benson, Laurel Marsden, Lilly Cooper, Luna Steeples, and Hiroki Berrecboth. Benson will play Jessup, tribute from District 12 alongside Zegler's Lucy Gray Baird; Marsden will play Mayfair Lipp, who places Lucy Gray's name into contention for the tenth Hunger Games; Cooper will play Arachne Crane, mentor to a tribute from District 10; Steeples will play Dill, tribute from District 11; and Berrecloth will play Treech, tribute from District 7.

"Tom Blyth is an explosive rising talent whose mesmerizing and charismatic presence makes him an exciting actor and perfect for this leading role," Erin Westerman, president of Production for Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, said in a statement.
 
"Coriolanus Snow is many things – a survivor, a loyal friend, a cutthroat, a kid quick to fall in love, and a young man ambitious to his core," Lawrence echoed. "Tom's take on the character showed us all the complex ambiguities of this young man as he transforms into the tyrant he would become."
 
"Tom's performance will both fulfill and disrupt everything you think you know about Coriolanus Snow. He's a tremendous talent who will show why Snow always lands on top," producer Nina Jacobson added.

Are you excited to see Hunter Schafer in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds? Tell us in the comments! 

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is set to open in theaters on November 17, 2023.