The first reactions to Sunrise on the Reaping are in, and the early verdict from the London premiere is unusually emphatic: critics and early viewers are calling the new Hunger Games prequel one of the strongest films in the franchise, with newcomer Joseph Zada singled out as a breakout star as the young Haymitch Abernathy. The film opens in cinemas on November 20, 2026, and the wave of praise that followed its October 28 premiere has already set the tone for what Lionsgate hopes will be one of the biggest releases of the year.
Sunrise on the Reaping is the sixth film in the Hunger Games series and the second prequel after 2023's The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Adapted from Suzanne Collins' 2025 novel of the same name, it is set 24 years before the first film and follows Haymitch as a teenager fighting to survive the 50th Hunger Games, the Second Quarter Quell, in which twice the usual number of tributes are sent into the arena. Francis Lawrence, who has directed every instalment except the first, returns behind the camera.
The first reactions landed on social media after the film's London premiere on Wednesday, October 28, 2026. Critics who attended were permitted to share short reactions, though full reviews remain embargoed until much closer to the November 20 release. What emerged was a striking consensus: this is not a routine franchise entry coasting on nostalgia, but a darker, more emotional film that several viewers ranked at or near the top of the series.
The praise centred on Zada. Collider's Perri Nemiroff said the young actor left her jaw on the floor time and time again. Next Best Picture's Lauren LaMagna called his performance a star-is-born role and described him as heartbreakingly radiant as Haymitch. The Nerds of Color writer Nikita Francois went further, calling the film easily the best in the franchise and Zada electrifying in the lead role. FilmHounds Magazine editor-in-chief Gavin Spoors wrote simply that Zada is a star.
The reactions also stressed that the film earns its emotion rather than borrowing it from the earlier films. Spoors praised a stellar third act that pulls the rug out from underneath the audience, while /Film's Nina Starner gave the film an A and called it a worthy addition to the franchise. ScreenRant critic Tatiana Hullender described it as a beautiful, bittersweet story that translates very well to film.
To understand why these reactions matter, it helps to know where Sunrise on the Reaping sits in the Hunger Games story. The original four films, released between 2012 and 2015, followed Katniss Everdeen, played by Jennifer Lawrence, as she was drawn from the coal-mining District 12 into a televised fight to the death and then into a revolution against the Capitol. Woody Harrelson played Haymitch, Katniss's mentor: a former victor whose drinking and sharp remarks concealed a painful past that the films only hinted at.
Sunrise on the Reaping fills in that past. The novel, published in 2025, tells the story of the 16-year-old Haymitch, chosen for the 50th Hunger Games, the Second Quarter Quell. In a Quarter Quell, the Capitol twists the rules to mark an anniversary, and for the 50th Games it doubled the number of tributes, sending 48 young people into the arena instead of 24. The book follows Haymitch's fight for survival and the losses that shaped the bitter, guarded man audiences met decades later.
The film's cast reaches across the franchise timeline. Alongside Zada, Mckenna Grace plays Maysilee Donner, Elle Fanning plays a younger Effie Trinket, Ralph Fiennes plays President Coriolanus Snow, Jesse Plemons plays Plutarch Heavensbee, Kieran Culkin plays Caesar Flickerman, Glenn Close appears in a scene-stealing role, Maya Hawke plays Wiress, Kelvin Harrison Jr. plays Beetee and Whitney Peak plays Lenore Dove Baird. Several of those roles were played in the original films by well-known actors, including Stanley Tucci as Caesar and the late Philip Seymour Hoffman as Plutarch, and the new casting has been one of the most talked-about parts of the production.
Francis Lawrence's return is also significant. He has directed every Hunger Games film except the first, including Catching Fire, both parts of Mockingjay and The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. That continuity, reviewers suggest, shows on screen: the new film is repeatedly described as looking and feeling of a piece with the earlier films while telling a sadder, more grown-up story.
The most quoted reaction came from Film Speak critic Griffin Schiller, who compared the film to the Star Wars stories Rogue One and Andor. He called it a sobering, yet powerful story of devastating loss and the necessary cost of rebellion for a sunrise we may never see. As a fan of the series and especially of the book, he wrote that he could not have asked for a more perfect adaptation, adding that Francis Lawrence beautifully captures the invigorating spark of revolution and the tragedy of Haymitch's journey, culminating in a resounding gut punch.
That Rogue One comparison kept recurring, and it is revealing. Rogue One and Andor are stories in which the audience already knows the broad outcome, yet the drama comes from the cost paid along the way. Sunrise on the Reaping works the same way: viewers know Haymitch survives, because the older Haymitch exists in the original films. The tension, according to the early reactions, comes from learning what survival cost him, and why the young man in the arena became the cynical mentor of later years.
Other reactions underlined the ensemble. Next Best Picture editor-in-chief Matt Neglia said the film features some of the best casting of the year, singling out Glenn Close as a scene stealer and saying Jesse Plemons channels the spirit of the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. Digital Spy reported that viewers at a UK fan screening were just as enthusiastic, with one calling it the best Hunger Games yet and others praising Zada and co-star Mckenna Grace, who plays Maysilee.
It is worth keeping the usual caution in mind: first reactions from a premiere are short, enthusiastic social media posts, not full reviews, and premiere audiences are often the most receptive crowd a film will ever meet. The full critical picture will only emerge when reviews are published closer to November 20. Even with that caveat, the consistency of the praise, across different critics and outlets, is notable, as is the fact that so much of it focuses on performance and story rather than spectacle alone.
One of the biggest talking points has nothing to do with the new cast. Jennifer Lawrence confirmed on October 28 that she returns as Katniss, alongside Josh Hutcherson as Peeta and Woody Harrelson as the older Haymitch, in material that connects the prequel to the original films. Reports describe their appearance as a flash-forward epilogue that mirrors the closing section of Collins' novel, in which the older Haymitch recounts his history to Katniss and Peeta.
Lawrence recently told the Call Her Daddy podcast that the reunion was so emotional, recalling that she and Hutcherson didn't walk to the bathroom without our arms around each other. The detail, small as it is, captures something fans have responded to: more than a decade after the original films, the three leads returned together to close a circle that began when Katniss first entered the arena.
For audiences, the return also answers a practical question about how the film handles its timeline. Rather than simply ending in the arena, Sunrise on the Reaping reaches forward to the characters viewers already know, letting the older Haymitch's story land with the weight of everything the original films showed about him. Several early viewers said that structure was part of what made the third act hit so hard.
The Hunger Games is one of the most successful young-adult franchises in cinema, and its return matters to Hollywood beyond a single opening weekend. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, released in 2023, proved there was still an audience for Panem, but it was a prequel about a villain, Snow, that divided some fans. Sunrise on the Reaping is a different bet: a beloved character, a tragic story, and a direct emotional bridge to the original films.
The early reactions suggest that bet is paying off. A prequel that audiences already know the ending of has to justify itself through character, and the praise for Zada suggests it does. If the full reviews match the first reactions, Lionsgate will have a rare thing in modern franchise filmmaking: a sixth film that critics describe as a high point rather than a holding pattern.
There is also a commercial signal. When advance tickets for opening weekend went on sale, AMC, Cinemark and Fandango reported errors under heavy traffic within minutes, and AMC set up a queue for its app, according to Vulture. Ticketing strain is not a box-office guarantee, but it is a sign of real demand, especially for a film opening on November 20, just before the Thanksgiving holiday corridor in the United States.
Between now and release day, the film's rollout will follow a familiar pattern. Full reviews will be published closer to November 20, and those will give a fuller sense of whether the premiere enthusiasm holds up under closer scrutiny. Lionsgate is also expected to step up marketing, including new trailers and clips, as the release approaches.
For fans, the next milestone is simply the release itself: November 20, 2026, in cinemas in the United States and the United Kingdom. The film runs roughly two and a half hours, which makes it one of the longer entries in the series, and early viewers have suggested the length is earned by the story's final act. Whether Sunrise on the Reaping becomes, as some early viewers already claim, the best film in the franchise will be decided not by premiere reactions but by audiences over its opening weekend and beyond.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping opens in cinemas on November 20, 2026, in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Joseph Zada plays Haymitch at 16. Woody Harrelson, who played the older Haymitch in the original films, also returns in the film's flash-forward material.
Yes. Lawrence confirmed on October 28 that she returns as Katniss alongside Hutcherson as Peeta and Harrelson as the older Haymitch, in a flash-forward that connects the prequel to the original films.
Yes. It is adapted from Suzanne Collins' 2025 novel of the same name, which tells the story of Haymitch's victory in the 50th Hunger Games, the Second Quarter Quell.
No. First reactions are short social media posts from premiere screenings. Full reviews will be published closer to the November 20 release and will offer a more detailed critical verdict.
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