Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson to return for upcoming 'Hunger Games' prequel film
Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson will reprise their roles as Katniss and Peeta in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.
According to The Hollywood Reporter and Variety, the two stars are confirmed to return to the franchise. More details about their participation are still under wraps, but they will likely appear in a sort of flash-forward as the upcoming movie is a prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy.
The forthcoming film is slated for release on Nov. 20, 2026. It will be directed by Francis Lawrence, who has helmed all of the installments since the 2012 film Catching Fire. Billy Ray is tasked with the screenplay.
The film stars Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket, Ralph Fiennes as President Snow, Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee, Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Beetee Latier, and Kieran Culkin as Caesar Flickerman. Also among the confirmed cast members are Mckenna Grace, Maya Hawke, Joseph Zada, Glenn Close, and Whitney Peak.
In the book, Sunrise on the Reaping is set in Panem on the morning of the 50th Hunger Games reaping, 24 years before the events of the 2008 novel The Hunger Games. It follows 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy, who becomes Katniss and Peeta's mentor.
The Hunger Games takes place in the dystopian nation of Panem, where the affluent Capitol controls 12 poor districts. Every year, it selects children from each district through a lottery to compete in the Hunger Games—a deadly, televised battle royale.
