The odds are forever in “The Hunger Games” fans favor as Scholastic announced on May 6 that “Sunrise on the Reaping,” the fifth volume of Suzanne Collins’s popular dystopian series, will be published March 18, 2025. The new book begins during the 50th Hunger Games and is set 24 years before the original books.
Collins originally had a career in screenwriting for shows such as “Little Bear,” “Oswald,” and multiple Nickelodeon shows. She published her first novel, “Gregor the Overlander,” in 2003. Five years later, in 2008, Collins went on to write the first book of “The Hunger Games” series.
The new novel will follow Haymitch Abernathy, a victor from previous games and a mentor to Katiness Everdeen, the lead in the original “Hunger Games” series. Fans are eager to read about Haymitch’s narrative as it will answer the mysterious questions raised in all of the books prior.
“Sunrise on the Reaping” will not only explore Haymitch’s character, but it will also lead the way for characters briefly mentioned in other books to be seen in a new light. The 50th Hunger Games is also a crucial point in “The Hunger Games” storyline as it raised the number of tributes put into the games from 24 to 48. The new book may provide insight into how the development affected the culture surrounding the games.
Along with this book announcement, Lionsgate, the company that has produced the previous film adaptations of all previous four “Hunger Games” books, released that “Sunrise on the Reaping” will open in theaters on Nov. 20, 2026. Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson will be returning as producers, and Francis Lawrence, who has worked on all but the first “Hunger Games” movie, will return as director.
Fans are just as excited to see the film and some are going as far to discussing or even arguing about the possible casting of young Haymitch in the film. As many are quick to cast well-known actors such as Jacob Elordi and Austin Butler, it is unlikely that many staple names in Hollywood will get their shot. The casting directors will most likely go in the direction they did for ‘‘Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’’where they casted Tom Blythe and Rachel Zegler as the leads not only for their talent but also because their names could be more easily tied to their role in the series.
Collins’s series has been a global blockbuster so far. The books have sold over 100 million copies in over 26 different languages worldwide, and the five films based on the books have made around $3.3 billion. If this highly anticipated addition to the series is going to be anything like the previous books, the fans’ expectations for the upcoming Games will be exceeded.
