Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak to lead The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping

Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak cast as leads in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, out Nov. 20, 2026.
Pop Culture & Art | April 24, 2025

Photo: AFP

Lionsgate has officially cast Joseph Zada and Whitney Peak in lead roles for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, the upcoming prequel to the hit dystopian saga.

Set to release in theaters on November 20, 2026, the film explores the backstory of fan-favorite character Haymitch Abernathy, played by Zada, with Peak starring as his love interest, Lenore Dove Baird.

Based on the bestselling novel by Suzanne Collins, Sunrise on the Reaping is set 24 years before the original Hunger Games trilogy and 40 years after The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. It follows the events surrounding the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the Second Quarter Quell. Francis Lawrence returns as director, with a screenplay by Billy Ray.

Lionsgate Motion Picture Group co-president Erin Westerman praised the casting, saying, “Jo and Whitney carry this legacy forward with incredible heart, depth, and fire.” The casting team auditioned hundreds of actors before finding Zada and Peak, who delivered a chemistry that sealed their roles.

Zada is currently known for his work in the upcoming Prime Video series We Were Liars and Netflix’s East of Eden. Peak is recognized for her roles in Max’s Gossip Girl, Hocus Pocus 2, and as the face of Chanel’s Coco Mademoiselle fragrance.

The Hunger Games franchise has earned over $3.3 billion globally. Sunrise on the Reaping is expected to be another box office hit, as the novel sold 1.5 million copies in its first week—more than any previous installment.

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