On Sept. 16, Lionsgate Studios released the newest trailer for the next film in “The Hunger Games” series, “Sunrise on the Reaping.”
“Sunrise on the Reaping” is a film adaptation of the novel by Suzanne Collins of the same name. The story acts as a prequel to “The Hunger Games” franchise, telling the story of Haymitch Abernathy’s run of the games and attempted rebellion against the Capitol 24 years before the start of the first “The Hunger Games” book.
The trailer opens up with a line from an older Haymitch (Woody Harrelson) discussing the nature of the Hunger Games. “Nobody ever wins the games. Period. There are survivors; there’s no winners.” The quote is played over a scene of helicopters flying over a stadium filled with cheering fans and chariots circling the arena.
It’s at that point that the audience gets a look at a Haymitch in his youth, played by Joseph Zada. Zada is known for his performances as Johnny Sinclair Dennis in the show “We Were Liars” and as Daniel in “Total Control.” “Sunrise on the Reaping” will be Zada’s first blockbuster film.
The trailer gives the audience a look at some members of the film’s star-studded cast, including Ralph Fiennes as President Snow, Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner, Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket and Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee. Other actors known to appear in the film include Maya Hawke as Wiress, Kieran Culkin as Caesar Flickerman and Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson returning to their respective roles as Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark.
The scene of the chariots circling the arena follows; it soon takes a sour turn. One of the horses pulling the chariots, which Haymitch is on, gets startled by something thrown directly in front of it. The horse begins rushing around the arena, spreading chaos throughout their surroundings.
The scene then cuts to a conversation between Haymitch and President Snow, in which Snow threatens Haymitch. “Haymitch Abernathy,” he says, “These are my games. How you die is all up to me.”
Scenes are then briefly shown of a very industrial environment, possibly either the Capitol or one of the districts. The trailer cuts between these shots with shots highlighting the crushing power of the Capitol, with soldiers in full armor unloading from a truck, the Capitol’s blood-red banner unfurling and an airfield filled with VTOLs preparing to launch.
The trailer then presents the audience with a look at the arena for the 50th Hunger Games, which the film will be focusing on. The arenas in previous installments of the franchise have featured sprawling forests, lush jungles and ruined cityscapes. In the 50th Games, the arena is a vibrant valley, flanked by mountains and volcanoes on every side and filled with verdant greenspace in the middle.
The 50th Games hold a morbid importance in the world of “The Hunger Games,” as they were the second Quarter Quell, a special edition of the games held every 25 years in which the Capitol throws in a twist to spice up the games. For the 50th games, the twist is that double the tributes will be competing, which the announcer in the trailer promises will bring the winner “twice the glory.”
The trailer then cuts between shots of the games and the outside, as Jesse Plemmons as Plutarch begins to talk to Haymitch about the cruelty of the games. The trailer shows tributes dying in painful ways and buildings being burned to the ground. Haymitch is asked why he thinks why everyone puts up with the cruelty and tyranny of the Capitol.
The trailer cuts back to the arena with the chariots, where a shell-shocked Haymitch is standing in front of President Snow after the chaos has ended. Clips are shown of one of the chariots crashing and Haymitch clutching the face of someone on the ground. The trailer goes back to Haymitch staring at Snow, as Haymitch begins clapping with heaps of anger behind every clap.
As the trailer wraps up, it shows a mix of more action shots from inside the arena and scenes highlighting the extravagance of the Capitol. The audience is shown volcanoes exploding in the arena and tributes attacking each other as dancers perform in front of an invigorated audience. The audience is shown clips of what seems like Haymitch trying his best to fight back against the Capitol, committing acts of sabotage in industrial zones.
Those three groups of scenes continue to grow in the pace at which they’re cut between as the trailer reaches its zenith. The trailer ends with the title card for the film, as well as the symbol of the film, being a snake and a mockingjay attacking one another. The bird and snake are joined at the body, seemingly two parts of the same whole that cannot exist without one another.
The film is set to release in theaters on Nov. 20.
