Irish Actress Molly McCann, 15, Plays Louella in The Hunger Games Prequel

Molly McCann, a 15-year-old Irish actress, plays Louella McCoy in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, according to Deadline. The film bows worldwide on 20 November.

The story is a prequel. It is set 24 years before Katniss Everdeen's story, and it opens on the morning of the reaping for the 50th Hunger Games. A reaping is the public draw that picks the young people, called tributes, who will compete in the Games. This year's draw takes 48 tributes instead of the usual 24.

Louella is one of the female tributes from District 12, the coal-mining district that Katniss later comes from. She is a close ally of Haymitch, who is played at 16 by Joseph Zada.

McCann's earlier screen work includes the series Bad Sisters and the film Herself. Deadline describes Sunrise on the Reaping as her biggest project to date. She auditioned for the part in early 2025, more than a year before the film's release.

In an interview with Deadline, conducted over Zoom from her family home in Dublin, McCann talked about playing Louella. The role places her in a large ensemble, in a story that centres on the Games' early years and the District 12 tributes who enter them.

For a casting story like this, the key dates are the ones that matter for viewers. The film's worldwide opening is set for 20 November, and that is the date to watch. Anyone planning a first look at the film can find it in cinemas from that day, as the release date stands.

The film is a reminder of how long a production runs before it reaches an audience. Casting took place in 2025. Filming, editing and marketing followed. Now the film is ready to be seen, and a 15-year-old in Dublin is about to see her name on the big screen in a franchise with a large following.