The latest “Hunger Games” movie has expanded its cast with two awards show heavy hitters. Glenn Close and Billy Porter have been added to “Sunrise on the Reaping” to play Drusilla Sickle and Magno Stift, respectively.
They will join previously announced cast members Joseph Zada, Whitney Peak, Mckenna Grace, Jesse Plemons, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Maya Hawke, Lili Taylor, Ben Wang, Ralph Fiennes, Elle Fanning and Kieran Culkin. The prequel movie about the 50th Hunger Games is set to be released on Nov. 20, 2026.
Based on Suzanne Collins’ fifth book in the series, “Sunrise on the Reaping” is set 24 years before the events of the original trilogy. This story starts off during the morning of the 2nd Quarter Quell, meaning 48 children will compete in the game to the death instead of the usual 24. Katniss and Peeta’s mentor Haymitch Abernathy (played by Woody Harrelson in the original trilogy and by Joseph Zada in this upcoming movie) is the main character this time around.
The eight-time Oscar-nominated Close will play Drusilla Sickle, who is described as a “cruel escort” for District 12’s tributes. She will be joined by Porter’s Magno Stift, her estranged husband and the district’s uninspired designer. In 2019, Porter won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, becoming the first gay Black man to be nominated and win any lead acting category.
“Glenn Close is a dream Drusilla. She brings so much of her intellect and imagination to each role, creating characters who are unforgettable and iconic. I think Glenn and Francis [Lawrence] will have a ball bringing Drusilla from the page to the screen,” producer Nina Jacobson said of the casting on Monday.
As for Porter, she called the actor “one of those rare performers who can dazzle and devastate in equal measure on stage and screen.” “He made an indelible impression on me when we worked together on ‘Pose,’ both as an actor and a human being,” Jacobson added. “Casting this show has felt like winning the lottery every time one of our idols said yes to us. To be able to announce Glenn Close and Billy Porter together is an embarrassment of riches that we can all celebrate.”
Francis Lawrence will direct the movie from a screenplay adaptation by Billy Ray. Jacobson and Brad Simpson will produce for Color Force with Cameron MacConomy serving as an executive producer. Meredith Wieck and Scott O’Brien will oversee the project for Lionsgate, and Robert Melnik negotiated the deal for the studio.
“The Hunger Games” remains a massive property for Lionsgate. The five films in the franchise have taken in over $3.3 billion at the box office. As for “Sunrise on the Reaping,” Collins’ latest book sold 1.5 million copies in its first week of sales across the U.S., U.K., Ireland, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
