If anyone out there is ready to volunteer for tribute once again and get back to some serious dystopian arena action, then sharpen your arrows and get your Mockingjay calls down, because we are returning to Panem. Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins is finally ready to take readers back to her sci-fi world with a brand new prequel novel. Scholastic recently announced that the next highly-anticipated installment in the Hunger Games legacy will release in May 2020.
Exciting news, Hunger Games fans: A prequel novel set 64 years before the events of The Hunger Games is coming May 2020! Read more here: https://t.co/nA7wAYX4Fz pic.twitter.com/3JdeCTcAQp
— Scholastic (@Scholastic) June 17, 2019
It has been a good 4 years since the final cinematic endeavor, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay -- Part 2, hit theaters where fans watched Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen -- the role that made her a household name -- whose revolution brought the oppressive Capitol to its knees. But this next chapter in book form will be taking place 64 years before the events of the first novel and Hunger Games film released back in 2012. It will start on the morning of the 10th annual games.
For those who do not remember, in the story, every year, the 12 districts of Panem are forced to select a boy and a girl from each district to fight in a nationally-televised battle royale as punishment for an earlier rebellion. In this new story, Collins claims she wants to explore the world's reconstruction, which takes place 10 years after the war -- or what is referred to as the Dark Days. Panem's struggle to rebuild after the devastation has provided the author with the perfect setting for these new characters to grapple with questions of humanity, survival, and the state of nature. All this sounds like a great addition to the series and might be a huge opportunity for Lionsgate to resurrect one of their most successful franchises.
Love them or hate them, the Hunger Games films were very successful as far as big-budget movies go, ranking in close to $3 billion worldwide. So it makes sense that any chance to bring back the franchise probably feels like a sure-fire win. Lionsgate has been talking about the possibility of giving the popular series the prequel treatment for some time now. However, this time, they were promising more arena-based action should one ever happen. Now it seems their prayers have been answered as everything is falling into place for it to get off the ground as the studio is officially putting the 5th Hunger Games film in the works. Lionsgate Motion Picture Group chairman Joe Drake said that he and his team are looking forward to continuing to work closely with author Suzanne Collins on the movie.
The Hunger Games prequel film is in the early stages of development, but the prequel novel will release on May 19, 2020.