New Hunger Games Film Gets the Green Light at Lionsgate

Hunger Games fans worldwide are losing their minds over the announcement that Suzanne Collins will return to her dystopian book series to write another instalment — and not only that, the movie version already has the green light.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will release in theaters on November 20, 2026, following the book's March 2025 release.

This new addition to the series takes place twenty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games , commencing on the morning of the reaping of the Fiftieth Hunger Games.

Fans of the world noted quickly that this was the Second Quarter Quell, the year Haymitch Abernathy — played by Woody Harrelson in the initial quad of films — won the games.

It's refreshing to see an author of a beloved young adult series listen to her audience, who have been asking for this book since the first one hit the shelves.

Collins has previously said that she will only write when she has something to say. When asked about this new book, she said that she found inspiration from Scottish Enlightenment philosopher David Hume and his "idea of implicit submission and, in his words, 'the easiness with which the many are governed by the few'".

She went on to say, "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."

Further details about the film version of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping are yet to be announced, but it is believed that Francis Lawrence — who has directed all but one of the five The Hunger Games films — will return to direct.

Related: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Review: An Undeniably Captivating Tale of Fear and Power

Adam Fogelson, chair of the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group, said, "Suzanne Collins is a master storyteller and our creative north star. We couldn't be more fortunate than to be guided and trusted by a collaborator whose talent and imagination are so consistently brilliant. We know Hunger Games fans worldwide will be spellbound by where Suzanne has focused this next extraordinary story. 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. Like fans around the globe, we are eagerly anticipating this exciting return to Panem."

Suzanne Collins said, "From the beginning, Lionsgate has been a wonderful home and partner for the Hunger Games franchise, and I'm very excited to be collaborating with Adam and the team as we bring this next story to theaters in 2026".