Summary
A new book in theHunger Gamesseries just came out, and you know what that means: speculation about more movies in the franchise. There is one particular star who isn’t shy about being game for another installment in the pop culture sensation.
The firstHunger Gamesbook came out in 2008 and took the world by storm overnight. The initial trilogy of novels (The Hunger Games,Catching Fire, andMockingjay) was wrapped up by 2010, a prequel set sixty years before the first novel (The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) released in 2020, and the latest novel focused around the young Haymitch Abernathy (Sunrise on the Reaping) just came out in March 2025.Lionsgatesnapped up distribution rights in 2009 and got to work on films that would become sensations in their own right. With Jennifer Lawrence in the lead role and beloved character actors like Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, and Stanley Tucci on board, theHunger Gamesfilm franchise proved that young adult fiction could be turned into blockbuster movies just likeHarry Potterwas. It has been ten years sinceThe Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2hit theaters, but that doesn’t mean that the movies have stopped altogether.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakeswas adapted into a 2023 filmstarring Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, and Hunter Schafer. Another film, this time based on the recently releasedSunrise on the Reaping, is set to release on June 30, 2025. As long as Suzanne Collins keeps writingHunger Gamesbooks, Lionsgate seems intent on making more movies, andJosh Hutcherson seems ready to join back up. TheFive Nights at Freddy’s actor was recently asked about the franchise at theDream It Conventionin Paris, France:
“I would happily play Peeta again. The story is incredible. TheHunger Gameswas incredible. I think Peeta’s an incredible person to get to bring to life. I’m curious to know what happens between when they have their family and when the story ends, just to understand what happened in the world, how they got to that place. But I’m down. If you can talk to Suzanne Collins and tell her to write a book, I’m in. Sign me up!”
What Would A Return To The Hunger Games Post-Mockingjay Even Look Like?
The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2isa pretty definitive end to that original series of films. Presidents Coin and Snow end up dead, Katniss is pardoned, and the Hunger Games themselves are disbanded entirely. Hutcherson’s Peeta and Lawrence’s Katniss end up married with two children. It puts a bow neatly on the series, which is why Collins has only written two prequels thus far. The characters in the original threeHunger Gamesbooks (and subsequent movie adaptations) have been to hell and back. Letting them ride off into the proverbial sunset to live happily ever after and have a few kids is a sweet ending that would only be undone by further installments.
Collins could come up with some other societal collapse that bringsthe titular Hunger Gamesback from the dead, but is that something she really wants to do? It would make more sense to jump years into the future—long after Peeta, Katniss, and the rest of the characters have passed on—and have something happen that plunges everything into chaos again. Either way, it seems Hutcherson would be on board for moreHunger Gamesaction.
