HAPPY HUNGER GAMES!
The Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins to release fifth book in series as new novel will be a ‘prequel’
Plus, details on the previous four Hunger Games installments
THE Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins has announced the fifth book in the popular young adult series.
The upcoming novel will take place before the series protagonist, Katniss Everdeen, steps in for her sister, Rue, in the dystopian tournament.
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Sunrise on the Reaping is the title of the fifth installment in the blockbuster series, according to Associated Press.
“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 author's statement read.
“The story also lent itself to a deeper dive into the use of propaganda and the power of those who control the narrative."
"The question, ‘Real or not real?’ seems more pressing to me every day,” Suzanne, 61, closed with.
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THE PLOT
The events of Sunrise on the Reaping will take place during the 50th Hunger Games.
The timeline jumps back before the original novel, in which Katniss joins as tribute in the 75th Hunger Games.
Readers will also find themselves about 40 years after the most recent book, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes follows Coriolanus Snow, 18, as he attempts to revive the declining viewership of the gladiator tournament.
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As Gamemaker, Coriolanus realizes he would rather rise to power than continue his forbidden romance with District 12 tribute, Lucy Gray Bair.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping has been scheduled to hit bookstores on March 18, 2025.
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Outside of the Hunger Games series, Suzanne has written the picture book, Year of the Jungle, and the children's fantasy series, The Underland Chronicles.
THE MOVIES
In 2012, actress Jennifer Lawrence, 33, brought Katniss from the book's pages to the screen with the first adaptation of The Hunger Games.
Actor Donald Sutherland, 88, played the older version of Snow in the four cinematic sequels.
In 2023, Rachel Zegler, 23, portrayed Lucy in the blockbuster prequel.
NEW HUNGER GAMES MOVIE
Check out the details on the development process to bring The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping the big screen.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Francis Lawrence is in talks to direct the new adaptation.
No word yet on casting for the film.
However, Lionsgate has scheduled a wide theatrical release on Nov. 20, 2026.
“The Second Quarter Quell is legendary and looms large over the history of the Games, even into the time of Katniss Everdeen a quarter-century later," Lionsgate’s Adam Fogelson shared in a statement.
"Like fans around the globe, we are eagerly anticipating this exciting return to Panem."
The 50th Hunger Games is noteworthy for its champion, Haymitch Abernathy, played by actor Woody Harrelson, 62.
Tom Blyth, 29, played the younger counterpart of Snow.
Filmmaker Francis Lawrence, who directed the sequels, Catching Fire and Mockingjay (Parts 1 and 2), returned to the franchise to direct the prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Suzanne adapted the screenplay of the prequel with Michael Arndt, one of the Catching Fire screenwriters.
“Lionsgate has always been the cinematic home of The Hunger Games, and I’m delighted to be returning to them with this new book,” Collins said at the time.
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“From the beginning, they have treated the source material with great respect, honoring the thematic and narrative elements of the story, and assembling an incredible team both in front of and behind the camera."
“It’s such a pleasure to be reuniting with Nina, Francis, and Michael to adapt the novel to the screen, and having them share their remarkable talents, once again, with the world of Panem," she concluded.
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