The Smashing Pumpkins have released "Black Stars," the newest song from The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (The Album), and it arrived with an official music video. Lionsgate and MCA shared the track as the next release from the soundtrack, which lands on November 13, one week before the film opens in theaters on November 20, 2026. The video went live on the band's official VEVO channel last night (October 15), and the song is now on all streaming platforms.
Check out the official music video for "Black Stars" below:
How Black Stars Came Together
The song goes back to a stretch when frontman Billy Corgan was working on a solo album. During that time, the band received an invitation to contribute an original song to The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. Corgan then brought in producer Butch Vig to help him pick the song that fit the world of The Hunger Games best, and "Black Stars" was the one that made the cut.
Longtime fans will know the name right away. Vig produced the band's first two albums, Gish in 1991 and Siamese Dream in 1993, so this track puts the producer behind "Cherub Rock" and "Today" back in the room with Corgan for a franchise that has always leaned on big, moody music. The current lineup of the band is Corgan, guitarist James Iha, and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin.
The band shared the release on X, saying they were "Grateful to be casting our spell" on the album with the new track. Check it out below:
Fans can listen to "Black Stars" and pre-order the album through the official listen and pre-order page.
What Else Is On The Album
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping (The Album) is executive produced by Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb, whose credits include Chris Stapleton and Sturgill Simpson, and it brings together 29 artists from across genres. MCA has described the soundtrack as loaded with previously unreleased music that is exclusive to the album and made specifically for the film. "Black Stars" sits at track 15, closing out the first disc of the two-disc CD.
The first song released from the album was Noah Kahan's "Draw You Out," which dropped on October 2. Kahan co-wrote and co-produced it with Aaron Dessner, and it sits at track 27. MCA has not attached artist names to most of the other 27 songs yet, but the tracklist includes three parts of "The Raven," arena mixes of "Ruthless," "Survive," and "Doing The Best That I Can," and a song called "Deep in the Meadow," which shares its name with the lullaby Katniss sings to Rue in the first story. The album closes with "Alone (Live in Berlin 2022)."
Music has been a big part of the franchise's marketing since the first film. Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars recorded "Safe and Sound" for The Hunger Games in 2012, Lorde curated the Mockingjay Part 1 album, and Olivia Rodrigo wrote "Can't Catch Me Now" for The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes in 2023. Lionsgate is clearly going big again with a 29-artist album and a rollout that drops a new song every couple of weeks.
The Story Of Sunrise On The Reaping
The film is directed by Francis Lawrence, who also directed Catching Fire, both parts of Mockingjay, and The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The screenplay is by Billy Ray and Michael Lesslie, based on the novel by Suzanne Collins, and the film is produced by Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, and Lawrence.
Set 24 years before The Hunger Games, the story follows 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy of District 12 on the morning of the reaping for the 50th Hunger Games. That year is the Second Quarter Quell, and twice as many tributes are sent into the arena. Haymitch forms an alliance with fellow tribute Maysilee Donner and joins a coalition that sets out to challenge the Capitol from inside the Games. He risks everything to bring the Games down from within, and his story ends up setting the rebellion in motion.
Joseph Zada stars as the young Haymitch, the role Woody Harrelson played in the original films, with Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner and Ralph Fiennes as President Snow. The cast also includes Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee, Glenn Close as Drusilla Sickle, Kieran Culkin, Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket, Maya Hawke as Wiress, Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird, and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Beetee.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is rated PG-13 for strong violence, bloody images, disturbing material, some smoking and teen drinking. It opens in theaters and IMAX on November 20, 2026.
Does a Smashing Pumpkins song reunited with Butch Vig fit the darker tone of Haymitch's Games, or were you hoping for a different kind of artist on this soundtrack?