Lionsgate has revealed the first photo from the highly anticipated The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, which will be opening in theaters on November 17, 2023.
The photo features a first look at Tom Blyth as Coriolanus Snow and Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird. The reveal comes after the recent casting news of Viola Davis as Head Gamemaker Dr. Volumnia Gaul.
The cast of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes also includes Peter Dinklage, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, and Jason Schwartzman.
The movie is an adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ #1 New York Times bestseller (See on Amazon).
Years before he would become the tyrannical President of Panem, 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) is the last hope for his fading lineage, a once-proud family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol.
With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow is alarmed when he is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), the girl tribute from impoverished District 12.
But, after Lucy Gray commands all of Panem’s attention by defiantly singing during the reaping ceremony, Snow thinks he might be able to turn the odds in their favor.
Uniting their instincts for showmanship and newfound political savvy, Snow and Lucy’s race against time to survive will ultimately reveal who is a songbird and who is a snake.
The film is directed by Francis Lawrence, who previously directed the franchise’s Catching Fire, Mockingjay Part One, and Mockingjay Part Two.
The movie will be shepherded by franchise producer Nina Jacobson and her producing partner Brad Simpson, along with Francis Lawrence. Suzanne Collins and Tim Palen will serve as executive producers.
The latest draft of the screenplay is by Michael Lesslie (Macbeth, starring Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard, and Assassin’s Creed). Lesslie builds on the work of writers Suzanne Collins and Michael Arndt (the Oscar-winning screenwriter of Little Miss Sunshine, who also served as one of the writers of Catching Fire).
Meredith Wieck and Scott O’Brien are overseeing on behalf of Lionsgate.
Mirko Parlevliet has been reporting on the entertainment industry since 1998 and founded Vital Thrills in 2018 to cover the latest news on streaming, movies, TV, and video games.