The first full trailer for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes debuted during Lionsgate's CinemaCon panel tonight, and, unlike most of the teasers that screened at the event, the studio has officially released the footage online.
Based on Suzanne Collins’ 2020 book of the same name, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes takes place decades before The Hunger Games, which means Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) won't factor in to the story. Instead, this prequel will focus on a younger Coriolanus Snow, an ambitious boy who eventually becomes the tyrannical leader of Panem.
Tom Blyth (Billy the Kid, The Gilded Age) will play the 18-year-old Snow, who ends up being assigned to mentor District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler).
In the novel, Gray "sparks everyone’s attention by singing during the reaping ceremony. With her talent and charm, Snow believes he may be able to turn the odds in their favor to win the games."
Check out the trailer below along with a new poster, and let us know what you think in the comments.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes follows "a young Coriolanus (Tom Blyth) who is the last hope for his failing lineage, the once-proud Snow family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With his livelihood threatened, Snow is reluctantly assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), a tribute from the impoverished District 12. But after Lucy Gray’s charm captivates the audience of Panem, Snow sees an opportunity to shift their fates. With everything he has worked for hanging in the balance, Snow unites with Lucy Gray to turn the odds in their favor. Battling his instincts for both good and evil, Snow sets out on a race against time to survive and reveal if he will ultimately become a songbird or a snake."
The Hunger Games prequel is set to hit theaters on November 17.
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Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.