Ralph Fiennes Cast as President Snow in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping

Ralph Fiennes has been chosen to portray President Coriolanus Snow in Lionsgate's latest adaptation from the Hunger Games series, titled The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The announcement came today via the official Hunger Games X/Twitter account, marking Fiennes as the latest addition to the franchise's cast and one of the most pivotal roles to be filled.

Set between the events of the four Hunger Games films led by Jennifer Lawrence and the 2023 prequel, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Sunrise on the Reaping explores a period in President Snow's life before he becomes the jaded dictator portrayed by the late Donald Sutherland in the 2010s series. In the prequel, a young Snow was played by Tom Blyth, and now Fiennes will depict Snow at a crucial point in his life, with the narrative focusing on District 12 tribute and eventual victor, Haymitch Abernathy.

Producer Nina Jacobson expressed her excitement about Fiennes' casting, stating, “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. 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.”

While Fiennes' casting is highly anticipated, he's not the only exciting addition to the cast. Other notable announcements include Jesse Plemons (Breaking Bad, Civil War), who will play a young version of the character originally portrayed by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman, Plutarch Heavensbee, and Joseph Zada (Total Control, Invisible Boys), who is set to star as Haymitch.

President Snow.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping – in theaters November 20, 2026. pic.twitter.com/mj9gXk1hTt

— The Hunger Games (@TheHungerGames) May 16, 2025

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is an adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ 2025 novel of the same name and is slated for release on November 20, 2026. The film will be directed by series veteran Francis Lawrence and written by original Hunger Games screenwriter Billy Ray. The project was announced last summer, with a teaser trailer released in April of this year.