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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →The Sunrise on the Reaping cast is led by Joseph Zada as young Haymitch Abernathy. The film also stars Mckenna Grace, Whitney Peak, Jesse Plemons, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Maya Hawke, Lili Taylor, Ben Wang, Elle Fanning, Ralph Fiennes, Kieran Culkin, Glenn Close, and Billy Porter, and is scheduled for November 20, 2026.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping adapts Suzanne Collins’s novel about the Fiftieth Hunger Games, the Second Quarter Quell, which takes place 24 years before The Hunger Games. The film is directed by Francis Lawrence and remains unreleased as of August 14, 2026.
Key takeaways
- Joseph Zada plays young Haymitch Abernathy, the central character in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.
- The film adapts Suzanne Collins’s Sunrise on the Reaping, which begins on the morning of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, also called the Second Quarter Quell.
- The ensemble includes Mckenna Grace, Whitney Peak, Jesse Plemons, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Maya Hawke, Lili Taylor, Ben Wang, Elle Fanning, Ralph Fiennes, Kieran Culkin, Glenn Close, Billy Porter, Iris Apatow, Kara Tointon, and Molly McCann.
- The story takes place 24 years before The Hunger Games and follows Haymitch after he is selected for the expanded Second Quarter Quell.
- The film is scheduled for theatrical release on November 20, 2026, with Francis Lawrence directing.
Who is in the Sunrise on the Reaping cast?
The Sunrise on the Reaping cast combines new performers with younger or earlier-era versions of several familiar Hunger Games characters. Joseph Zada leads as Haymitch Abernathy, while the wider cast includes tributes from the Second Quarter Quell, District 12 residents, Capitol officials, a future Head Gamemaker, and characters who appeared in the original film series.
| Actor | Character | Role in the story | Franchise connection |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joseph Zada | Haymitch Abernathy | Young District 12 tribute and central character | Younger version of Woody Harrelson’s character |
| Mckenna Grace | Maysilee Donner | Haymitch’s fellow District 12 tribute | Newly dramatized central-era character |
| Whitney Peak | Lenore Dove Baird | Haymitch’s love interest and a major District 12 presence | Character from Collins’s prequel story |
| Jesse Plemons | Plutarch Heavensbee | Capitol figure and future Head Gamemaker | Younger version of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s character |
| Kelvin Harrison Jr. | Beetee Latier | Technically gifted tribute | Younger version of Jeffrey Wright’s character |
| Maya Hawke | Wiress | District 3 tribute and earlier-era victor | Younger version of Amanda Plummer’s character |
| Lili Taylor | Mags Flanagan | Young Mags and District 4 victor | Younger version of Lynn Cohen’s character |
| Ben Wang | Wyatt Callow | Competitor in the Second Quarter Quell | New cast member for this era |
| Elle Fanning | Effie Trinket | Capitol escort | Younger version of Elizabeth Banks’s character |
| Ralph Fiennes | President Snow | Older Coriolanus Snow and authoritarian leader of Panem | Younger version of Donald Sutherland’s character |
| Kieran Culkin | Caesar Flickerman | Flamboyant television host | Younger version of Stanley Tucci’s character |
| Glenn Close | Drusilla Sickle | Tribute escort | New character in the film’s announced cast |
| Billy Porter | Magno Stift | Drusilla Sickle’s estranged husband | New character in the film’s announced cast |
| Iris Apatow | Proserpina Trinket | Supporting Capitol character | Connected to the Trinket family |
| Kara Tointon | Willamae Abernathy | Supporting District 12 character | Connected to Haymitch’s family |
| Molly McCann | Louella | Supporting character | Role identified in current cast listings |
The announced roles are documented in the current Sunrise on the Reaping cast listing, with the Glenn Close and Billy Porter additions reported by the Los Angeles Times. Minor cast information can change before release, so the list should be checked again if the film’s production announcements change.
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Who plays Haymitch in Sunrise on the Reaping?
Joseph Zada plays young Haymitch Abernathy in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The film follows Haymitch when he is selected from District 12 for the Fiftieth Hunger Games, long before Woody Harrelson played the character as Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark’s mentor in the original film series.
Haymitch is the story’s central figure rather than a supporting link to the earlier movies. The casting therefore gives the prequel a direct connection to the best-known Hunger Games films while presenting the character at a much earlier point in his life.
Which familiar Hunger Games characters return in younger versions?
Jesse Plemons plays Plutarch Heavensbee, Kelvin Harrison Jr. plays Beetee Latier, Maya Hawke plays Wiress, Lili Taylor plays Mags Flanagan, Elle Fanning plays Effie Trinket, Ralph Fiennes plays President Snow, and Kieran Culkin plays Caesar Flickerman. Each role belongs to an earlier point in the character’s history than the version seen in the original films.
| New performer | Character | Earlier film performer associated with the role | Character’s function |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jesse Plemons | Plutarch Heavensbee | Philip Seymour Hoffman | Future Head Gamemaker |
| Kelvin Harrison Jr. | Beetee Latier | Jeffrey Wright | Technically gifted tribute |
| Maya Hawke | Wiress | Amanda Plummer | District 3 victor and tribute |
| Lili Taylor | Mags Flanagan | Lynn Cohen | District 4 victor |
| Elle Fanning | Effie Trinket | Elizabeth Banks | Capitol escort |
| Ralph Fiennes | President Snow | Donald Sutherland | Leader of Panem |
| Kieran Culkin | Caesar Flickerman | Stanley Tucci | Television host |
The casting is about character continuity, not a claim that the performers are exact physical matches for the earlier actors. The film’s confirmed information establishes who is playing each role, but the unreleased movie does not yet establish the performances, screen time, or on-screen relationships.
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What is the story of Sunrise on the Reaping?
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping adapts Suzanne Collins’s novel Sunrise on the Reaping. The book begins as the Fiftieth Hunger Games approaches. Because the Second Quarter Quell takes twice as many tributes from each district, Haymitch is taken from District 12 along with three other District 12 tributes.
The story is set 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games. That timeline makes the film both a Haymitch origin story and a look at an earlier stage of Panem’s political and televised Games machinery.
Collins published the novel on March 18, 2025. In a Scholastic announcement, Collins explained the book’s political inspiration: With Sunrise on the Reaping, I was inspired by David Hume’s idea of implicit submission and, in his words, ‘the easiness with which the many are governed by the few.’
The statement appears in Scholastic’s March 27, 2025 announcement.
Read before the movie
The direct source for the film is Suzanne Collins’s Sunrise on the Reaping novel. Scholastic has identified hardcover, ebook, audio-download, library-audio, and audio-CD formats, followed by trade paperback, collector’s, and movie-tie-in editions. Jefferson White narrates the audiobook, according to Scholastic’s audiobook announcement. Edition names and availability can vary by country and retailer.
How successful was the Sunrise on the Reaping novel?
According to Scholastic in 2025, Sunrise on the Reaping sold more than 1.5 million World English copies in its first week across print, ebook, and audiobook formats in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
According to Scholastic in January 2026, the novel had sold more than 4.4 million World English copies since publication. The figures include print, ebook, and audiobook sales and describe the book’s performance, not the film’s eventual audience.
When will Sunrise on the Reaping be released?
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is scheduled for theatrical release on November 20, 2026. The date is an announced schedule rather than a guarantee that cannot change. Scholastic’s 2026 release announcement and the film’s official Lionsgate promotional materials identify the planned theatrical date.
| Milestone | Date or status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Novel publication | March 18, 2025 | Collins’s source novel became available |
| Film status | Unreleased as of August 14, 2026 | Performances, final cut, reviews, and audience response are not established |
| Scheduled theatrical release | November 20, 2026 | Planned cinema release date for the film |
Who is directing Sunrise on the Reaping?
Francis Lawrence is directing The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The screenplay credits include Billy Ray, Suzanne Collins, and Michael Lesslie. Lionsgate has released official promotional trailer material centered on Joseph Zada’s Haymitch, but the film remains unreleased, so descriptions of finished scenes, costumes, chemistry, or audience reaction would be premature.
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What should fans expect from the announced cast?
The confirmed cast points to a story operating on several levels: Haymitch’s personal life in District 12, the tributes forced into the Second Quarter Quell, and the Capitol institutions that turn the Games into political entertainment. The returning characters also show how the prequel connects to the original series without requiring the film to retell Katniss’s story.
The most important qualification is that “confirmed cast” does not mean every possible cameo or minor role has been announced. Cast databases and studio reporting may add or revise supporting roles before release. No reliable conclusion about unannounced appearances, performances, or the final film can be drawn from the current cast list alone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who plays Haymitch in Sunrise on the Reaping?
Joseph Zada plays young Haymitch Abernathy in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The film follows Haymitch when he is selected for the Fiftieth Hunger Games, or Second Quarter Quell.
What is the Sunrise on the Reaping movie release date?
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is scheduled for theatrical release on November 20, 2026. The date is announced but could change before release.
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Is Sunrise on the Reaping based on a book?
The film adapts Suzanne Collins’s Sunrise on the Reaping, a novel published on March 18, 2025. The novel begins on the morning of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, 24 years before The Hunger Games.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Joseph Zada leads The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping as young Haymitch Abernathy. The confirmed ensemble includes earlier versions of Plutarch, Beetee, Wiress, Mags, Effie, Snow, and Caesar, and Francis Lawrence’s film is scheduled to reach theaters on November 20, 2026.
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