New Hunger Games trailer puts young Haymitch in the arena
Lionsgate has released a new trailer for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The film is adapted from Suzanne Collins' novel of the same name. It opens in theatres and IMAX on 20 November 2026.
The story is set 24 years before the events of The Hunger Games. It starts on the morning of the reaping, the selection of young tributes to fight in the arena, for the 50th Hunger Games. That contest is also known as the Second Quarter Quell.
It centres on Haymitch Abernathy, who later served as a mentor to Katniss Everdeen. In the earlier Hunger Games films, Haymitch was played by Woody Harrelson and Katniss by Jennifer Lawrence. This time, Joseph Zada plays Haymitch at age 16.
The new footage gives a better look at the tributes, according to Yahoo. It shows Haymitch forming an alliance in the arena with Maysilee Donner, played by Mckenna Grace. It also shows him joining a coalition determined to challenge the Capitol's control under President Snow.
Two lines drive the trailer. Haymitch says, "We're not animals to kill for their entertainment." Plutarch Heavensbee advises him, "Show the world that there is another way."
Ralph Fiennes plays President Snow. Jesse Plemons plays Plutarch Heavensbee, a role previously played by Philip Seymour Hoffman.
The wider cast includes Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Elle Fanning, Maya Hawke, Whitney Peak and Kelvin Harrison Jr. The mix brings together new tributes, Capitol figures and rebels around Haymitch's Games.
Behind the camera, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson and Francis Lawrence are producers. The screenplay is by Billy Ray and Michael Lesslie.
For fans, this means a return to an earlier chapter, not a continuation. The focus is Haymitch before the drink, before the mentoring, when he is still a tribute trying to survive the arena and read the politics around him.
