As Lionsgate continues to roll out casting news for Sunrise on the Reaping, Hunger Games fans have noticed some Easter eggs in the way the announcements have been released.
The first batch of casting announcements for the upcoming film dropped within days of each other last month, including Joseph Zada as lead Haymitch Abernathy, Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird, Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner and Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee. Social media sleuths were quick to note the reveal of four cast members could be a nod to the amount of tributes reaped from each District for the 50th annual Hunger Games in the book.
As a refresher, Haymitch’s Hunger Games, a.k.a. the Second Quarter Quell, featured twice the amount of normal tributes with a total of 48. In addition to Haymitch and Maysilee, District 12’s tributes included Wyatt Callow, who will be played by Ben Wang, and Louella McCoy, who has yet to be cast.
Fans also noticed that the Hunger Games social media accounts waited 18 days to announce the next group of casting updates, beginning with Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Beetee. The wait time matches up with the approximate amount of days Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) were in the arena in the first Hunger Games book.
Another Easter egg noticed by fans is that a few pairs of cast members were announced at the same time, including Zada, 20, and Peak, 22, on April 23, and Maya Hawke as Wiress and Lili Taylor as Mags on Wednesday, May 14. The choice could be a reference to how two tributes are normally reaped for the Hunger Games at the same time.
Casting announcement references aside, several cast members have connections to the actors and actresses who played their older counterparts in the first four Hunger Games films. Plemons, 37, previously played OG Plutarch Philip Seymour Hoffman’s son in 2012’s The Master, while Harrison Jr., 30, played OG Beetee Jeffrey Wright’s son in 2018’s Monster.
Hawke’s mother, Uma Thurman, starred alongside Amanda Plummer in 1994’s Pulp Fiction. Plummer, 68, notably portrayed Wiress in the second Hunger Games film, 2013’s Catching Fire.
Not all news of the upcoming film is celebratory. Fans were torn over Kiefer Sutherland not taking on his late father, Donald Sutherland’s role as the villainous President Snow in the prequel film after Ralph Fiennes was announced to be taking on the part on Friday, May 16.
“Are you kidding??? So not Kiefer Sutherland who is the spitting image of Donald Sutherland? C’mon,” wrote one X user, while another added, “Was hoping for Kiefer but this still eats!!!!! Yesssss.”
Others expressed their excitement to see Fiennes, 62, portray Snow after his iconic run as Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter film franchise. “I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT IT’S ACTUALLY GOING TO BE HIM!!!!!!!! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA LOVE THIS,” an excited fan wrote in the comments of the Hunger Games Instagram account’s announcement post. A different user commented, “Imagine being able to say u are apart [sic] of two of the most famous movie adaptations ever.”
Sunrise on the Reaping, which hit bookshelves on March 18, follows a young Haymitch — originally played by Woody Harrelson — as he battles it out in the Hunger Games only to face dangerous repercussions for his actions. The book and film were announced at the same time back in June 2024.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is set to hit theaters on November 20, 2026.
