‘Sunrise On The Reaping’ cast: Who is set to star in the ‘Hunger Games’ prequel? 

The Hunger Games has a new sequel film on the way – but who will star in Sunrise On The Reaping? Read on for all the info.

The latest entry in the franchise will be an adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ 2025 novel, serving as a prequel to the original Hunger Games series of films. It will be set 24 years before Katniss Everdeen’s story and will focus on a young Haymitch Abernathy, the character played by Woody Harrelson in the previous films.

Set during the 50th Hunger Games, it will also explore the young Plutarch Heavensbee, played by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman first time around. Sunrise On The Reaping will chart Plutarch’s rise as he works as a cameraman assigned to cover the Games, planting the seed for his future rebellion against the Capitol.

The new film will be directed by Francis Lawrence, who has overseen every instalment of the franchise since 2013’s Catching Fire. Billy Ray, who co-wrote the 2012 original, returns as screenwriter and filming is due to start in July. It has a projected release date of November 20, 2026.

Sunrise On The Reaping is also set 40 years after the events of 2023’s The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes. In a four-star review of that film, NME wrote: “But what makes this fifth film the best of the franchise is its tense, paranoid latter half. Snow finds himself exiled to District 12 as a peacekeeper and his sympathies for the rebels seem to sway back and forth. Though we know what he eventually becomes, it’s a treat to watch him working out which master he should serve as he spies, lies and betrays. It’s rare to see moral ambivalence depicted in such non-judgemental fashion, especially in a blockbuster movie.”

Sunrise On The Reaping cast: Who is set to star in the Hunger Games prequel?

The lead role in Sunrise On The Reaping is Haymitch Abernathy, a tribute in the 50th Games that will go on to be Katniss Everdeen’s reluctant mentor. In this film, he will be played by Australian actor Joseph Zada, for whom this will be a major breakout Hollywood role. Zada has previously been seen in Total Control and Invisible Boys, and will also be a part of Amazon Prime Video’s upcoming adaptation of East Of Eden, alongside Florence Pugh.

Abernathy’s girlfriend Lenore Dove Baird is another key character. She is a member of The Covey, a musical group that settled in District 12 after the events of The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes. She will be played by Whitney Peak, a Ugandan-Canadian actor known for her role in HBO Max’s revival of Gossip Girl and the Disney+ film Hocus Pocus 2.

Another tribute in the 50th Hunger Games will be Maysilee Donner, who will be portrayed by Mckenna Grace, a former child star from films such as I, Tonya and Captain Marvel. In recent years, she has also starred in The Handmaid’s Tale, receiving an Emmy nomination, as well as Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire.

Plutarch Heavensbee, meanwhile, will be played by Jesse Plemons, the Oscar-nominated actor that rose to fame as Todd Alquist in Breaking Bad and went on to star in Fargo, Game Night, The Irishman and The Power Of The Dog. Intriguingly, Plemons, whose acting style has often been compared to that of previous Heavensbee actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, also played the son of Hoffman’s Lancaster Dodd in Paul Thomas Anderson’s Scientology-inspired 2012 film The Master.

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