The Hunger Games Casts Oscar Nominee as New President Snow in Sunrise on the Reaping

The cast of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping continues to grow, with the prequel movie officially finding its President Snow.

Who will play President Snow in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping?

Oscar-nominated actor Ralph Fiennes has been cast to play President Snow, the ruthless dictator of Panem, in the upcoming prequel. Snow was previously played by Donald Sutherland in the original Hunger Games films and was the antagonist throughout the series.

Fiennes is known for a number of high-profile roles throughout his career, having starred in projects like Schindler’s List, Conclave, In Bruges, The Hurt Locker, The Menu, The Grand Budapest Hotel, the Harry Potter films, the James Bond franchise, and more.

“We wanted to honor Donald Sutherland by having one of this generation’s greatest actors play President Snow 24 years before Katniss Everdeen entered the arena,” said producer Nina Jacobson on the casting. “Working with Ralph has been on my bucket list since he traumatized me for life in Schindler’s List. It’s genuinely a thrill to welcome him to the Hunger Games.”

Sunrise on the Reaping features a star-studded cast led by Joseph Zada as a younger Haymitch Abernathy, Jesse Plemons as a younger Plutarch Heavensbee, as well as Whitney Peak, who will play Lenore Dove Baird, Haymitch’s girlfriend.

Mufasa star Kelvin Harrison Jr. will also play a younger Beetee, who was originally played by Jeffrey Wright. Glenn Close is also reportedly in talks to join the upcoming film in some capacity. Maya Hawke and Lili Taylor will also star in the film as a younger version of Wiress and Mags, respectively.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will be released in United States theaters on November 20, 2026, from Lionsgate.

The Hunger Games prequel movie is being directed by Francis Lawrence, who has also helmed a number of the franchise’s previous entries. Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson are producing the film, while Cameron MacConomy serves as executive producer.

Billy Ray is writing the script for Sunrise on the Reaping. Ray worked on the screenplay for the first Hunger Games movie, which was released in 2012, and earned an Oscar nomination for penning 2013’s Captain Phillips.