Lionsgate has released a new trailer for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, offering a closer look at the brutal return of Panem’s Hunger Games and the young Haymitch Abernathy at the center of the story. The upcoming prequel takes audiences back decades before Katniss Everdeen’s story, exploring the events that shaped one of the franchise’s most recognizable characters.
Based on Suzanne Collins’ novel of the same name, the film is set 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games. The story begins on the morning of the reaping for the 50th Hunger Games, known as the Second Quarter Quell. At the time, Haymitch is only 16 years old and is selected to compete in the deadly competition, long before he becomes the mentor known to audiences through the original films.
Joseph Zada takes on the role of the younger Haymitch, a character previously portrayed by Woody Harrelson in the film series. The trailer shows Haymitch being forced into an arena where survival comes at a devastating cost. While facing the physical dangers of the Games, he also struggles with the reality of being used as entertainment by the Capitol.
Haymitch forms an unexpected alliance with fellow tribute Maysilee Donner, played by Mckenna Grace. He also becomes part of a larger coalition that seeks to challenge the Capitol’s control under President Snow, portrayed in the new film by Ralph Fiennes. As the Games progress, Haymitch begins looking for a way to fight the system from inside the arena rather than simply trying to survive it.
The trailer places particular emphasis on Haymitch’s growing resistance. In one moment, his character declares that the tributes are not simply animals meant to be killed for the Capitol’s entertainment. Plutarch Heavensbee, played by Jesse Plemons, encourages him to demonstrate to the public that another way is possible. The character was previously portrayed by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman in the original film series.
The story ultimately follows Haymitch as he risks everything to undermine the Games from within. His actions are expected to have consequences that extend far beyond the arena, helping set events in motion that will eventually contribute to the rebellion that changes Panem. The film therefore provides a new perspective on the origins of resistance against the Capitol while expanding the history of a character already familiar to fans.
The prequel features a large ensemble cast alongside Zada and Grace. Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Elle Fanning, Maya Hawke, Whitney Peak and Kelvin Harrison Jr. are also part of the cast, with their characters adding to the wider political and personal conflicts surrounding the 50th Hunger Games.
Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson and Francis Lawrence are producing the film, while Billy Ray and Michael Lesslie wrote the screenplay. Francis Lawrence, who has previously directed several entries in the franchise, returns for the prequel. He and producer Nina Jacobson previously collaborated with Lionsgate on the film adaptations of Collins’ The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and Mockingjay.
With Sunrise on the Reaping, the franchise returns to a period when Panem’s system of control was already deeply established but the rebellion had yet to take the form audiences later witnessed through Katniss. By placing Haymitch at the center of the story, the prequel explores the experiences that ultimately shaped the mentor and survivor seen in the original films.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is scheduled to arrive in theaters and IMAX on November 20.
