Entertainment · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
Lionsgate Releases Trailer for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, Spotlighting Haymitch’s Second Quarter Quell
Lionsgate released a new Sunrise on the Reaping trailer featuring a young Haymitch's story. The film is a prequel set 24 years before The Hunger Games, following Haymitch Abernathy.
Whether Harrelson's voice is explicitly present.
2 of 3 outlets skipped it: third trailer has arrived with more gruesome scenes.
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Deadline
“Woody Harrelson’s voiceover can be heard saying “Nobody ever wins the games, period.”Read the original ↗
Bustle
“While Harrelson’s presence hasn’t been confirmed, he lent his voice to the original teaser, so he’s likely to return as well.”Read the original ↗
Deadline highlights Woody Harrelson’s voiceover in the trailer, while Bustle frames his participation as likely rather than explicit.
Second Quarter Quell Teased
Lionsgate released a new trailer, two new posters, a gallery of new images, and a behind-the-scenes image for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, spotlighting the Second Quarter Quell arena as anticipation builds for the film’s November 20, 2026 theatrical release.
“Lionsgate has released a new trailer, two new posters”
The Express Tribune said the latest trailer puts Joseph Zada’s young Haymitch Abernathy at the centre of Panem’s most dangerous Games, with the story revealing Haymitch’s selection to compete in the 50th Hunger Games alongside 47 other tributes.
The trailer material also frames the Second Quarter Quell as doubling the usual number of contestants, forcing Haymitch to form alliances while searching for a way to challenge the Capitol from within, as The Express Tribune described.
In the same promotional push, The Express Tribune tied the prequel to Suzanne Collins’ 2025 novel and said filming included large scale arena sequences in Asturias, Spain, reflecting the unusually high number of tributes involved.
Bleeding Cool News added that Sunrise on the Reaping “will revisit the world of Panem twenty-four years before the events of The Hunger Games,” starting on the morning of the reaping of the Fiftieth Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell.
Haymitch’s Words, Snow’s Grip
Multiple outlets highlighted the trailer’s emphasis on Haymitch’s fight against the Capitol, with The Hollywood Reporter quoting the trailer’s framing of the Games through Haymitch’s perspective.
The Hollywood Reporter said the trailer includes Zada’s Haymitch overheard saying, “We‘re not animals to kill for their entertainment,“ while Plutarch Heavensbee advises, “Show the world that there is another way.“
Radio Times similarly focused on President Snow’s direct threat in the trailer, quoting Snow telling Haymitch: “These are my games. How you die, is up to me.”
The Express Tribune described the promotional artwork as emphasizing the scale of the 50th Hunger Games and the enormous arena created for the Second Quarter Quell, while also featuring characters including Maysilee Donner, President Snow, Effie Trinket and Plutarch Heavensbee.
In the cast announcements and trailer coverage, Lionsgate’s materials placed Ralph Fiennes as President Snow and Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee alongside Joseph Zada as Haymitch, with Radio Times listing additional appearances from Lenore Dove Baird, Wyatt Callow, and Louella McCoy.
Release Plans and Franchise Stakes
As the marketing campaign ramps up, outlets tied the prequel’s release to a specific date and format, with The Hollywood Reporter saying The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping releases in theaters and IMAX on Nov. 20.
“The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping releases in theaters and IMAX on Nov. 20”
Business Insider said the film is set to hit theaters on November 20 and described the movie as taking fans back into the world of Panem through a young Haymitch Abernathy competing as a District 12 tribute 24 years before the events of Suzanne Collins’ original trilogy.
Business Insider also reported that the 50th Hunger Games has twice as many tributes competing, meaning 48 children from the districts are sent to the arena instead of 24, and it linked that structure to the Second Quarter Quell.
The Hollywood Reporter framed the stakes through the synopsis, saying the story “follows Haymitch into the arena, where he forms an unlikely alliance with fellow tribute Maysilee Donner (Mckenna Grace) and joins a coalition determined to challenge the Capitol’s control under President Snow (Ralph Fiennes).”
Media Play News added that Lionsgate’s trailer release came on September 16, 2026 and reiterated that the movie is produced by Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson and Francis Lawrence, with screenplay by Billy Ray and Michael Lesslie.