A Hunger Games prequel book and movie are in the works with Suzanne Collins

18 June 2019, 12:58 | Updated: 13 November 2020, 12:20

By Sam Prance

Lionsgate plan to adapt the new Hunger Games prequel book into a movie...

It's official. Suzanne Collins is writing a Hunger Games prequel book and Lionsgate are in talks to adapt it into a movie.

The Hunger Games took the world by storm when Suzanne Collins released the first book from the series back in 2008. The dystopian trilogy was then adapted into a set of four films, which were released between 2012 and 2015. The movies starred Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth and Elizabeth Banks and grossed almost 3 billion dollars worldwide. Now, Suzanne Collins has revealed that she is working on a new Hunger Games book and a film is in the works.

What will the Hunger Games prequel be about?

Suzanne Collins announces Hunger Games prequel book and movie
Suzanne Collins announces Hunger Games prequel book and movie. Picture: Lionsgate // Scholastic

Opening up about the book in a statement, Collins said: "With this book, I wanted to explore the state of nature, who we are, and what we perceive is required for our survival. The reconstruction period 10 years after the war, commonly referred to as the Dark Days – as the country of Panem struggles back to its feet – provides fertile ground for characters to grapple with these questions and thereby define their views of humanity.” I'm ready.

The as yet untitled novel is set for a 2020 release and it will explore Panem 64 years before the original trilogy. As to whether there will be a movie, Lionsgate chairman Joe Drake said: “As the proud home of the Hunger Games movies, we can hardly wait for Suzanne’s next book to be published. We’ve been communicating with her during the writing process and we look forward to continuing to work closely with her on the movie.”

Naturally the entire fandom is excited.

It's currently unclear if any of the original characters in Hunger Games will be in the upcoming prequel but fans have already noticed that Mags who features in Hunger Games: Catching Fire would have been alive during the events of the novel. Like Katniss, she won the Hunger Games as a teenager. In Catching Fire she takes part in the Quarter Quell as an 80-year-old, representing District Four with Finnick Odair.

Could the Hunger Games prequel be about Mags?

Are you excited for the Hunger Games prequel?