Philip Seymour Hoffman was still shooting The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 when he tragically passed away back in 2014. The beloved actor played Head Gamemaker Plutarch Heavensbee in three out of four movies in the franchise.
Mockingjay – Part 1 was released after his death and was dedicated to his memory, while Part 2 became Hoffman’s final on-screen role, with the movie being slightly rewritten to compensate for his absence.
Since then, there have been two prequel movies, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and the upcoming Sunrise on the Reaping. The latter features a young Plutarch as a cameraman for the Games, played by Black Mirror’s Jesse Plemons.
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Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, director Francis Lawrence shared why the late star’s son Cooper Hoffman wasn’t cast to play the younger version of his dad, despite their “similarities”.
“I will say that meeting Cooper the first time [for my film] was very powerful,” Lawrence said. “To see, and feel, the similarities they both have, it made me emotional.
“I love to work with people over and over, and Cooper is high on that list, but we needed someone who felt considerably older than Cooper is,” he explained.
Though Hoffman didn’t land a role in the hugely anticipated prequel, which will be released this November, he and Lawrence did get to work together on another dystopian survival thriller, The Long Walk.
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Related: Every Hunger Games character who has been recast in Sunrise on the Reaping
Based on Stephen King’s novel, the 2025 movie stars Hoffman as a contestant in a brutal televised walking competition. Set in the ’70s, 50 boys are forced to walk nonstop for days, maintaining a pace of three miles per hour.
The contestant who lasts the longest wins a large cash prize – but for the rest, the competition is a guaranteed death sentence. Hoffman leads the cast as Raymond ‘Ray’ Garraty, while David Jonsson, Garrett Wareing, Tut Nyuot, Mark Hamill, Judy Greer and Ben Wang also star.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is released in cinemas on 20 November.
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Divya is a freelance writer with experience in entertainment and lifestyle news. Described as a “telly addict” since childhood, Divya was able to translate her interests into a BJTC-accredited, Honours degree in Journalism and Media. After working in communications and marketing, Divya joined Digital Spy as a Freelance News Reporter. She has also written for various publications including Metro, Asian World News and TwitCelebGossip; as well as interviews, features and reviews on her own blog. Divya prides herself on her TV, film and showbiz knowledge, always offering (not so) fun facts to her long-suffering friends and family. From soaps to superheroes, Divya is the go-to person for tailored recommendations and up to date information.