The new film in the Hunger Games universe, Sunrise on the Reaping, will open in theaters on November 20, 2026. Preliminary forecasts suggest the picture could gross between $60 and $70 million over its first weekend in US cinemas. The premiere falls on the eve of Thanksgiving, a traditionally lucrative period for movie theaters.
The expected opening surpasses the figures of the previous film, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which took in $44.6 million over its first weekend in 2023. Still, the new film is far from the franchise record: in 2013, Catching Fire earned $158 million in its opening weekend.
Sunrise on the Reaping is an adaptation of Suzanne Collins's novel. The action takes place 24 years before the events of the original trilogy and follows the young Haymitch Abernathy, who becomes a participant in the 50th Hunger Games. The director is once again Francis Lawrence, who helmed several of the previous installments.
The role of young Haymitch is played by Joseph Zada. The cast also includes McKenna Grace, Jesse Plemons, Maya Hawke, Kieran Culkin, Ralph Fiennes, Glenn Close and Elle Fanning. Jennifer Lawrence, who played the protagonist Katniss Everdeen, has confirmed her participation in the filming. She said that reuniting with her colleagues from the original films, Josh Hutcherson and Woody Harrelson, was touching for her.
Letters