Summary
- Lionsgate has secured Billy Ray to write the screenplay for the film adaptation of Sunrise on the Reaping.
- Ray previously worked on the first Hunger Games film and has a good understanding of author Suzanne Collins' vision.
- Filming for "Sunrise on the Reaping" is set to begin in 2025 for a late 2026 release, expanding the franchise lore.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping film adaptation has already been underway at Lionsgate for a while now, despite the book only being two weeks old on shelves, and now the project has secured another essential part of the adaptation process with a familiar name.
The Hunger Games franchise was created by Suzanne Collins, whose young adult novel would expand to a full-on book series and then a film series with Jennifer Lawrence in the lead role as Katniss Everdeen. The first slate of films was a massive success, breaking box office records and leaving demand for more entries on the table despite running through all the mainline books already. As a result, Collins’ IP has since grown to include a prequel and another adaptation of The Hunger Games in a new medium. More recently, the author finished work on a second prequel novel, set closer to the events of the first book and film.
Following the success of The Hunger Games prequel project, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and its film adaptation, Collins’s next book was snapped up with fervor by Lionsgate for a film adaptation while it was still being written. Now, a new update on the ongoing adaptation project has been confirmed just a few days after Sunrise on the Reaping’s March 18 book release, and it’s good news. As reported by TheWrap, Captain Phillips, Overlord, and Terminator: Dark Fate scribe Billy Ray has been attached to write the screenplay for Sunrise on the Reaping. Ray, who also co-wrote the screenplay for the first Hunger Games film adaptation, will be working alongside director Francis Lawrence, who has been the filmmaker behind all the franchise’s films since the second entry. With the film set to expand the lore of the franchise even further on the big screen, there’s likely no better choice of scribe or director for the job.
Fans should be excited about Ray’s return to the franchise, as his work on the first film is even more notable than they realize. Since it was the first adaptation of her work, Collins personally co-wrote the screenplay for the first film alongside Ray and the film’s director. This gives the scribe a very handy understanding of her process and how she’d want things done. Getting the writer down is a great sign for the project as well, showing that the production timeline is likely on schedule. Things have been in motion behind the scenes prior to the publication, and Lawrence confirmed that Sunrise on the Reaping would begin filming in 2025 to meet up with its proposed late 2026 release window.
With Sunrise on the Reaping published and the adaptation well on its way to filming this year, there are a lot of different directions that Collins could take her IP. One obvious choice would be a project focused on or prominently featuring Peeta, as franchise star Josh Hutcherson is looking to return to the Hunger Games, but only if there’s a book to work off of. Whether or not that’s the next move or something else is brewing remains to be seen, but for now, fans can look forward to reading and then watching Sunrise on the Reaping when the film comes out next year.
The Hunger Games film franchise is available to stream on Netflix, with Sunrise on the Reaping set to hit theaters on November 20, 2026.
- Created by
- Suzanne Collins
- First Film
- The Hunger Games
- Latest Film
- The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes
- Cast
- Jennifer Lawrence, Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jena Malone, Elizabeth Banks, Rachel Zegler, Peter Dinklage, Viola Davis, Stanley Tucci
- Movies
- The Hunger Games (2012), The Hunger Games catching fire (2013), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part One (2014), The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part Two (2015), The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (2023)
In a Dystopian future, food has become the world's most valuable resource, and children must fight to the death in a televised event in order to win resources for their home districts. When Katniss Everdeen volunteers to take her sister's place, she sets in motion an uprising to change the world. Based on the hit YA novels by author Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games quickly became a phenomenon with four star-studded movies based on the original series and a prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, released in 2023. The series has featured performances by Oscar winner Jennifer Lawrence, Donald Sutherland, Woody Harrelson, Peter Dinklage, and Rachel Zegler.
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The Hunger Games: What Happened to the Rest of the World?
The complete absence of any mention of a society other than Panem in The Hunger Games begs the question: do any exist?
Source: TheWrap