Jennifer Lawrence Finally Confirms ‘Hunger Games’ Return, Reunites With Two Former Co-Stars
Jennifer Lawrence has confirmed she will return as Katniss Everdeen in *The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping*, reuniting with Josh Hutcherson and Woody Harrelson. Her return brings back three familiar cast members for a prequel set decades before the original story.
Lawrence said filming with the same crew and her former co-stars was emotional, recalling that Hutcherson and she stayed close on set. She also joked that Harrelson entered her hotel room through a window. The film follows 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy in the 50th Hunger Games, set 24 years before the original; Joseph Zada plays Haymitch and Ralph Fiennes plays President Snow. It opens on 20 November.
In short
- Jennifer Lawrence returns as Katniss.
- Hutcherson and Harrelson reunite with her.
- The prequel follows young Haymitch’s Games.
Explained simply
The Hunger Games is a series set in Panem, a fictional country where the ruling Capitol forces young people from its districts to compete in a televised fight to the death. Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence in the earlier films, became a central figure in the story of resistance to the Capitol.
Sunrise on the Reaping is a prequel, set 24 years before the first story, during the 50th Hunger Games. It follows Haymitch Abernathy at age 16; Joseph Zada plays him, while Ralph Fiennes plays President Snow. Josh Hutcherson and Woody Harrelson also appeared in the earlier films as Peeta Mellark and Haymitch’s mentor, respectively.