{"id":808792,"date":"2026-10-20T16:56:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-20T16:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/808792\/"},"modified":"2026-10-20T16:56:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-20T16:56:10","slug":"the-hunger-games-sunrise-on-the-reaping-says-keep-fighting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/808792\/","title":{"rendered":"The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping Says \u2018Keep Fighting\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you\u2019ve seen the original Hunger Games saga, you\u2019ll know it takes until the arrival of Katniss Everdeen<\/a> for the Capitol of Panem to be toppled<\/a>, with plenty of casualties along the way. So, heading into the series\u2019 second prequel, Sunrise On The Reaping<\/a> \u2013 following 2023\u2019s Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes<\/a> \u2013 you already know that things aren\u2019t necessarily going to be sunshine and rainbows for the fledgling rebellion around the 50th Hunger Games (Katniss was first reaped for the 74th edition, over two decades later). Add in that Woody Harrelson\u2019s alcoholic former victor Haymitch is a shell of a man when Katniss meets him, and it\u2019s clear he goes through hell.<\/p>\n

Sunrise On The Reaping is the tragic story of Haymitch\u2019s Hunger Games \u2013 with an even bigger bodycount than usual, since his deathmatch saw double the amount of tributes picked in a blockbuster \u2018Quarter Quell\u2019. Even more so than any other games, it\u2019ll push our protagonist to the edge. \u201cHis whole persona is the stick-it-to-the-man thing,\u201d says relative newcomer Joseph Zada, who plays the young Haymitch. \u201cAt what point does Haymitch break?\u201d Rather than ape Harrelson\u2019s performance, he\u2019ll be showing a new side to the character. \u201cThis is a completely different person at a very different part of their lives,\u201d he explains. \u201cI wanted to try and make a very big contrast between the two.\u201d<\/p>\n

For all the bleakness of the Hunger Games saga, there is a smidge of hope in there too \u2013 a note of resilience and holding on to principles, even if victory is literally decades away. \u201cYou have to be a part of something and have your voice heard, no matter what side you\u2019re on,\u201d says returning director Francis Lawrence. \u201cAnd you have to do it not necessarily expecting instant gratification. That change has to start, but it may not happen for generations. It may not happen in our lifetimes, but we\u2019re all part of a continuum, and you need to speak up.\u201d The real heart of Sunrise On The Reaping, and Haymitch\u2019s story? \u201cIt\u2019s the choice to keep fighting,\u201d says Lawrence. Game on.<\/p>\n

\"Empire<\/p>\n

Read Empire\u2019s full The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping story in the Dune: Part Three issue<\/a>, on sale Thursday October 22. Pre-order a copy online here<\/a>. The Hunger Games: Sunrise On The Reaping comes to UK cinemas from November 20.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you\u2019ve seen the original Hunger Games saga, you\u2019ll know it takes until the arrival of Katniss Everdeen…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":808793,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[96,2839,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-808792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-movies","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=808792"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808792\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/808793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=808792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=808792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=808792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}