Skip to main content

The next Hunger Games movie has found its lead actors

The movie will be set 24 years before the original Hunger Games.

By Joe Allen Apr 24, 2025 6:04 AM

Sunrise on the Reaping cover — Scholastic

Following the success of Sunrise on the Reaping, the latest book in the Hunger Games series, Deadline is reporting that the film adaptation that is set to release in 2026 has found its lead actors. Joseph Zada will play Haymitch in the film, while Whitney Peak will play Lenore Dove, Haymitch’s romantic partner.

The film will be set 40 years after the events of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and 24 years before Katniss Everdeen volunteers to take her sister’s place in the Hunger Games. The book follows Haymitch, the District 12 victor who mentors Katniss and Peeta, as he wins his own Games on their 50th anniversary.

Recommended Videos

“’The Hunger Games’ franchise has long been a launching pad for remarkable young actors, and Jo and Whitney carry that legacy forward with incredible heart, depth, and fire,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group co-president Erin Westerman. “After auditioning hundreds of gifted performers from around the world, these two stood out—not just for their talent, but for the emotional truth they brought to these iconic roles. Haymitch has always been a fan favorite, and his origin story is one of the most anticipated in the franchise. His relationship with Lenore Dove is deeply woven into the emotional history of Panem. We can’t wait for fans to experience the story that shaped one of the most compelling characters in the series.”

Zada is a rising young star whose name is not yet widely known, but he will soon star in an adaptation of East of Eden alongside Florence Pugh, Mike Faist, and Tracy Letts, among others. Peak, meanwhile, is set to star in the upcoming shark thriller Shiver alongside Phoebe Dynevor.

The film is set to hit theaters on November 20, 2026, and will be directed by Francis Lawrence, who has helmed every installment in the franchise since Catching Fire.

Joe Allen is a freelance writer at Digital Trends, where he covers Movies and TV. He frequently writes streaming… Read Full Bio

What Is a Cigar Without the Perfect Pair? What to Drink With Your Favorite Stick

cigar on an old fashioned

Chocolate and peanut butter. Beer and pizza. Buzz and Woody. Ruth and Gherig. There are just some things that work well together. And no matter what you do, you will never beat them and spend all of your time trying to find a more iconic pair than what already exists. I can count on one hand how many times I have smoked a cigar without an old fashioned in the other hand. And, there is a reason there aren’t more times…because, honestly, why would I waste the time smoking without drinking? Why would I waste chocolate without peanut butter? Why would I waste beer without pizza? I wouldn’t. And the Yankees wouldn’t have been the same without Murderer’s Row. And Toy Story would have been nothing without the rivals-to-friends of Buzz and Woody.

But how do you pair a cigar with the right drink? For me, bourbon mixed with sugar, bitters, and a bit of fruit is a good combination with anything. But I reached out to John Gaglio from La Aurora to get a little more guidance on how to deepen my pairing of the two, and here is what I learned.

Do you know the myth of Napoleon (the pig…not the man)

Napoleon

One of the many times I watched The Gentlemen, I laughed at the scene where Matthew (Jeremy Strong) joked that it was illegal in France to name a pig Napoleon. Of course, there are ridiculous laws all over the place. Want a few? In Georgia, it is illegal to eat fried chicken with a fork. In Arkansas, it is against the law to say the name incorrectly. Which means Bill Clinton would have come after me for years of me saying “ARE-Kansas.” It is prohibited to sleep on top of a refrigerator in Pennsylvania. That means my cat is a thug in Penn. And one of my favorites: It is illegal for unmarried women to parachute on Sundays.

The point is that there are crazy laws all over the place that seem completely ridiculous, and there is almost always a story behind them. So, is the Napoleon pig law a real thing? Is it illegal to raise a swine and name it after the legendary French Emperor? Well, let’s dig in. Why? Because I am a nerd and I need company in the weeds.

Who does James Bond work for? And is MI6 real?

James Bond Specter double breasted

We have some news on the movement of the next James Bond. According to reports, we are looking at the final four (we know of three). Jack Lowden (Slow Horses, Dunkirk), Callum Turner (Eternity, One Night Only), and Josh O’Connor (The Crown, Challengers) are all in the final running to portray the next 007. We also, allegedly, have a fourth, unannounced actor in the running. But of course we do. And since we have news and movement on the James Bond front, I started thinking about what the next movie will be about. That took me down a rabbit hole, and I landed on a question. What is MI6? James Bond’s employer is a shadowy government agency, like Jason Bourne’s Treadstone or Ethan Hunt’s Impossible Mission Force (IMF). But there is one major difference between them and the organization that signs 007’s paychecks.

His is real.