The Hunger Games, which was written by Suzanne Collins, has come out with a new addition to the series, as of March 18th, 2025. The new book, named ‘Sunrise On The Reaping’ is focused on the 50th Hunger Games, also known as the second quarter quell. Along with this, there is a new movie coming out on November 20th, 2026, based on ‘Sunrise On The Reaping.’ The movie has just started releasing its cast list within the past week, this is the list of actors and actresses we have for it so far.
1. Haymitch Abernathy
Haymitch Abernathy is one of the tributes from District 12. He’s also the victor of the 50th Hunger Games in Sunrise On The Reaping. His actor is Joseph Zada, someone incredibly unknown up until his casting. He’s an Australian man in his early 20s, and that’s about it. He seems to be a very personal man who should be respected.
Some of the reasons why he’s ranked number one are that he was announced first, which built up hype. The fact that he was so unknown before this also contributes to how much people love him. People love unknown faces, and he’s also decently accurate to Haymitch in the movies.
The accuracy of Joseph Zada’s Haymitch compared to Woody Harrelson’s Haymitch is also important. People value continuity and keeping a story straight. If the actor for the younger Haymitch looked completely different, he definitely wouldn’t be as loved.
2. Lenore Dove
Lenore Dove is a girl from the Covey, who are people in the Hunger Games franchise that perform, play music, sing, and do all sorts of things like that. The main instrument she plays is her tune box, which is referenced repeatedly. She’s Haymitch’s girlfriend throughout the entirety of Sunrise On The Reaping, outside of the epilogue. Her actress is Whitney Peak, a woman who fits the role perfectly.
She’s a 22-year-old Ugandan-Canadian woman. She starred in several films and shows before Sunrise On The Reaping. She was in Gossip Girl and Hocus Pocus 2 previously. She seems to be more mainstream than Joseph, but her privacy is just as important as Joseph’s.
The main reason why she isn’t ranked number one is due to the fact that she’s admittedly in a smaller role. She’s mentioned a lot in the book, however, Lenore’s role in actual speaking and interacting with Haymitch only spans a couple of chapters max. She’s a private person, as most covey women are. However, that doesn’t dismiss her importance to the book and Haymitch.
3. Maysilee Donner
Maysilee Donner is another tribute from District 12. She’s one of the daughters of the mayor; her twin sister is Merrilee Donner. Maysilee’s actress is McKenna Grace, who is also appearing in Scream 7. She was a TikTok fan cast that came to life, which people are kind of upset about as a result. The backlash against her isn’t fully unwarranted due to her being in Scream 7.
The reason that’s upsetting is because of the Zionism related to the franchise. A reason why she shouldn’t be getting as much hate as she does is that she’s 18. Although it shouldn’t be an excuse, she’s basically a kid, so she’s going to take whatever roles she gets, and even if that weren’t the case. She might not be the one taking these roles.
The reasons for it potentially not being her fault are the fact that it could be her agent, or the agency she’s working with, or something else. All of which are reasons that make sense, but she’s still getting third in the Sunrise on the Reaping. She isn’t the worst one here, in the Sunrise on the Reaping, but the others are definitely more preferred and preferable.
4. Plutarch Heavensbee
Plutarch Heavensbee is the head gamemaker for the Hunger Games. He is also a man who ended up participating in the revolution against the Capitol after the 75th Hunger Games. In Sunrise On The Reaping, he’s mainly a background role, occasionally doing favors for Haymitch.
His actor is Jesse Plemons, a man with just as much controversy as McKenna. His controversies are related to the fact that he’s a Zionist. His Zionism is getting plenty of hate on social media platforms like X, formerly known as Twitter. His Zionism is the main reason he’s ranked last on this list.
