Katniss & Peeta are back!
As per The InSneider (and confirmed by The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline), original The Hunger Games stars Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson will both return for the upcoming prequel The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which is due out in theaters next Fall.
In the original film series, Lawrence played Katniss Everdeen, with Hutcherson co-starring as her competitor-turned-love interest Peeta Mellark. Both ultimately survive the events of the films, get married, and eventually have two children. The final film ends with Katniss promising her newborn that she'll eventually share their story, so while the extent of their roles in the upcoming prequel is currently unknown, it seems plausible that it could pick up on this thread, with Katniss going even further back in the timeline to tell the story of her mentor Haymitch Abernathy, who was played by Woody Harrelson in the first four films.
The new film's synopsis reads, "Taking place 24 years before the first film, a young Haymitch Abernathy is selected to compete in the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell, which occurs every 25 years with a twist to the rules. For this Quarter Quell, each district of Panem must send twice the number of tributes to the Capitol, who will fight to the death in the Hunger Games."
Joseph Zada headlines the massive ensemble cast as Haymitch Abernathy, with a supporting cast featuring Mckenna Grace, Ben Wang, Molly McCann, Iona Bell, Percy Daggs IV, Jhaleil Swaby, Laura Marcus, Sky Frances, Rada Rae, Tatyana Muzondo, Alina Reid, Salimou Thiam, John Doeble, Kaine Buffonge, Jesse Plemons, Ralph Fiennes, Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Elle Fanning, Billy Porter, Iris Apatow, Edvin Ryding, Sandra Förster, Jax Guerrero, Maya Hawke, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Lili Taylor, Whitney Peak, Kara Tointon, Smylie Bradwell, Scot Greenan, Grace Ackary, Jeffrey Hallman, Serafin Mishiev, Melody Chikakane Brown, Jefferson White, and Devon Singletary.
After helming four of the five films in the franchise, Francis Lawrence is back again in the director's chair, this time with a screenplay from Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Billy Ray (Terminator: Dark Fate; Richard Jewell).
Following the release of the first film in 2012, The Hunger Games quickly became a global phenomenon, with Lawrence becoming a household name overnight. Her four films grossed nearly $3 billion worldwide, with the 2023 prequel The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes raking in another $348 million, taking the franchise's global gross to approximately $3.325 billion.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping hits theaters on November 20!