Grand Theft Auto VI and The Hunger Games Land on Back-to-Back Days

Grand Theft Auto VI launches on Thursday, November 19, 2026. The next film in The Hunger Games series opens the day after.

Sunrise on the Reaping, based on Suzanne Collins's novel, is set to open in North American cinemas on November 20, 2026. The studio Lionsgate first announced the adaptation in June 2024. The film's release date now falls one day after the most anticipated game of the year, which has put the two releases side by side in a lot of people's plans.

Rockstar Games, the studio behind Grand Theft Auto, announced the November date in November 2025. It moved the game from its earlier target of May 26, 2026. The game is coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. A soundtrack album, Grand Theft Auto VI: The Album, is also due on November 19, in partnership with Atlantic Records.

The overlap caught the attention of the film's director, Francis Lawrence. He has directed almost every Hunger Games film. Speaking to IGN, he said he hopes people find time for both. He also joked, "Play GTA, go see our movie, play more GTA."

Lawrence is a gamer, though not a deep one in this series. He told IGN he played the original Grand Theft Auto but has not played the games that followed. He named Metal Gear Solid, BioShock and Call of Duty among his favourite games of all time.

Circana, a US firm that tracks video game sales, says nearly one in three US console and PC gamers plan to buy Grand Theft Auto VI. That is a large audience, and it is one that also has a film opening the next day.

Lawrence also has a game link on his upcoming slate. He is attached to direct a live-action BioShock film for Netflix. The project has been in development for nearly 20 years. Gore Verbinski first brought the idea to Lawrence in 2009, but scheduling conflicts meant he could not take it on. Guillermo del Toro was later in talks to direct it. Lawrence is also preparing a film adaptation of Pierce Brown's Red Rising books for Paramount.

For anyone choosing between a game and a movie this November, the schedule is simple. The game arrives on the 19th and the film on the 20th. Both are on the calendar, and Lawrence's advice is to take in both.