Sunrise on the Reaping finally has moving footage — and a clock. Lionsgate debuted the first teaser for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping on Thursday, November 20, 2025, exactly one year before the film opens on November 20, 2026. The prequel centers on Haymitch Abernathy’s origin story during the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell, set twenty‑four years before the original saga.
Director Francis Lawrence returns to the franchise, adapting Suzanne Collins’ 2025 bestseller for the sixth film in the series. Joseph Zada, 20, plays a young Haymitch — the role originated by Woody Harrelson — with first‑look frames also showcasing Whitney Peak’s Lenore Dove Baird and Mckenna Grace’s Maysilee Donner.
The official franchise account underscored the date: “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping – in theaters & IMAX November 20, 2026.”
Cast & Creators: everyone confirmed so far
- Joseph Zada as young Haymitch Abernathy
- Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird
- Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner
- Ralph Fiennes as President Snow
- Jesse Plemons
- Kelvin Harrison Jr.
- Maya Hawke
- Lili Taylor
- Ben Wang
- Edvin Ryding
- Elle Fanning
- Kieran Culkin
- Glenn Close
- Billy Porter
- Iris Apatow
Behind the camera: Francis Lawrence directs; the screenplay is by Billy Ray. Producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson return for Color Force, with Cameron MacConomy as executive producer.
What the teaser sets up
The teaser arrives as a “surprise” drop and keeps plot specifics tight, but it firmly positions Haymitch at the center of a deadlier, expanded Games. The setup begins on the morning of the reaping for the Fiftieth Hunger Games, the Second Quarter Quell — the turning point that forges the mentor Katniss Everdeen later meets.
Momentum is high heading into the film. Collins’ novel was a publishing jolt, selling 1.5 million copies in its first week across the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with 1.2 million sold in the U.S. alone.
Release date and where this fits in the Hunger Games timeline
Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping opens in theaters and IMAX on November 20, 2026. Chronologically, it sits between the 2023 prequel The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and the original trilogy that began in 2012. It unfolds 24 years before Katniss Everdeen’s story, during Haymitch’s own fight to survive.
Bottom line: The Sunrise on the Reaping teaser is a promise — a return to Panem with a focus on Haymitch’s defining trial. With its stacked ensemble and a crystal‑clear date, this is the franchise’s next high‑stakes chapter.
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