The Hunger Games

March 15, 2025 by Penny Gusner

The Hunger Games

The narrative of Coriolanus Snow, prior to his eventual rise to power as the despotic President of Panem. Although the Snow family is struggling, Coriolanus is young and incredibly driven. When he is selected to serve as a mentor for the tenth Hunger Games, he believes there may be hope for his future. However, his excitement is short-lived as he is tasked with mentoring Lucy Gray Baird, a tribute girl from the impoverished District 12.

The Hunger Games Details

Directed by	Francis Lawrence
Screenplay by	Michael Lesslie Michael Arndt
Based on	The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Produced by	Nina Jacobson Brad Simpson Francis Lawrence
Starring	Tom Blyth Rachel Zegler Peter Dinklage Hunter Schafer Josh Andrés Rivera Jason Schwartzman Viola Davis
Cinematography	Jo Willems
Edited by	Mark Yoshikawa
Music by	James Newton Howard
Production companies	Color Force Good Universe Lionsgate Films
Distributed by	Lionsgate Films
Release dates	November 5, 2023 (Berlin) November 17, 2023 (United States)
Running time	157 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$100 million
Box office	$337.4 million

Plot

Coriolanus Snow is one of twenty-four Academy students chosen to guide a 10th Annual Hunger Games tribute in war-torn Panem. Coriolanus believes that his family’s wealth, which was harmed by his father’s passing, will be restored with the Plinth Prize scholarship.
District 12’s female tribute, Lucy Gray Baird, is allocated to Coriolanus. She entertains Capitol spectators during the reaping ceremony by putting a snake under Mayor Lipp’s daughter Mayfair’s dress and then leading the audience in song. While escorting Lucy Gray to the Capitol Zoo, where tributes are kept in open cages, Coriolanus gains her trust. Rebel bombs detonate while the tributes and mentors are touring the arena, killing multiple of them. Coriolanus is given rat poison as a weapon by Lucy Gray after she saves him from falling rubble, and he says she can hide.

Snakes that have undergone genetic modification are released into the arena during the final round of the Games. Lucy Gray wins the Games and avoids being bitten thanks to Coriolanus’s assistance. Dean Casca Highbottom then accuses Coriolanus of being unfaithful. Coriolanus is sentenced by Dean Highbottom to twenty years of peacekeeping duty. Coriolanus buys his way into District 12 by bribing an officer, and fellow Academy student Sejanus Plinth offers to accompany him, having lost faith in the Capitol’s principles after witnessing his tribute perish.

Cast

• Tom Blyth as Coriolanus “Coryo” Snow: A mentor for the upcoming 10th Hunger Games and future President of Panem
• Dexter Sol Ansell as young Coriolanus
• Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird: The female tribute from District 12 who forms a connection with Coriolanus, and a member of the Covey, a travelling musician group
• Josh Andrés Rivera as Sejanus Plinth: A classmate and friend of Snow, and the mentor to a tribute from District 2, his former home
• Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia Gaul: The head gamemaker of the 10th Hunger Games and the person who implemented them
• Peter Dinklage as Casca Highbottom: Dean of the academy and intellectual author of the Hunger Games
• Jason Schwartzman as Lucretius “Lucky” Flickerman: The first television host for the 10th Hunger Games
• Hunter Schafer as Tigris Snow: Coriolanus’s older cousin and confidante. She would go on to become a stylist in the Games and an ally to Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2.
• Rosa Gotzler as young Tigris
• Fionnula Flanagan as Grandma’am: Coriolanus and Tigris’s grandmother
• Burn Gorman as Commander Hoff: The leader of the Peacekeepers in District 12

Production

According to Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer, more stories from The Hunger Games film series might be considered, but only with Suzanne Collins’s or the book’s permission. This was said in August 2017. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes novel’s adaptation was being worked on by the firm in collaboration with author Suzanne Collins, according to a June 2019 announcement by Joe Drake, chairman of Lionsgate Motion Picture Group. Collins and Lionsgate revealed in April 2020 that the movie’s development was officially under progress. Francis Lawrence, who had directed the first three films in the series since The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, was later revealed to be the director. Collins, Michael Arndt, and Michael Lesslie wrote the screenplay, and Brad Simpson and Nina Jacobson served as producers.

Because of his concerns about the book’s length, Lawrence briefly thought of dividing the movie into two parts, much like he did with The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, but he later regretted that choice. According to Jacobson, the completed movie “really goes by so fast” despite having a “daunting” length. Collins would also work on the movie as an executive producer.

Music

The film adaptations of Zegler’s live performances of songs like “The Hanging Tree” and “Pure as the Driven Snow,” which were produced by Dave Cobb and primarily drew inspiration from Appalachian-country folk music, may be heard on the soundtrack of The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The official soundtrack for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (Music From & Inspired By) was released on November 17 by Geffen Records. It included songs performed by Zegler and well-known Americana and folk artists. The album’s top two singles were “The Hanging Tree (Lucy Gray’s version)” on October 20, 2023, and Olivia Rodrigo’s “Can’t Catch Me Now” on November 3. Composer James Newton Howard declared his intention to return in July 2022.

Marketing

On October 30, 2023, the film was given an interim agreement so that actors could promote it during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, since Lionsgate is not part of the AMPTP.

Release

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes had its European premiere in Berlin, Germany on November 5, 2023, its world premiere at the BFI IMAX in London on November 9, 2023, and was released on November 16, in Europe and November 17, 2023, by Lionsgate Films.

Home media

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes was released on digital and VOD on December 19, 2023. The film was released on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray and DVD on February 13, 2025, by Lionsgate Home Entertainment.

Reception

$337.4 million was made worldwide from the $166.4 million that The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes brought in in the US and Canada, as well as $171 million in other areas. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes was released in the US and Canada alongside Next Goal Wins, Trolls Band Together, and Thanksgiving. It was predicted to earn approximately $50 million from 3,776 theaters during its opening weekend, though some industry estimates put that figure as low as $45 million or as high as $60 million. With $5.75 million from Thursday night previews, the movie brought in $19.1 million on its opening day. It later made a $44 million opening, topping the box office but also being the franchise’s lowest starting point ever. With its, the movie brought in $29 million.

63% of the 238 reviews by reviewers on review aggregate Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 6.4/10. According to the website, “An outstanding cast and exciting story help make The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes a worthy return to Panem in spite of a rushed and somewhat frustrating ending.”[48] Based on 52 reviews from critics, Metacritic, which employs a weighted average, gave the movie a score of 54 out of 100, denoting “mixed or average” reviews. While audiences surveyed by PostTrak gave the movie an 87% overall positive review, with 70% indicating they would certainly recommend it, CinemaScore respondents gave the movie an average grade of “B+” on an A+ to F scale, the lowest of the franchise.

The Hunger Games Images