A movie adaptation of the new 'Hunger Games' prequel 'Sunrise on the Reaping' is already in the works. Here's everything we know so far.

• Suzanne Collins' "Sunrise on the Reaping" is a prequel to "The Hunger Games" about young Haymitch.
• Lionsgate greenlit a movie adaptation in 2024, almost a year before the book hit shelves.
• Although a release date and cast haven't been announced, producer Nina Jacobson has shared some info.

The release of "Sunrise on the Reaping" by Suzanne Collins marks a new dawn in the "Hunger Games" franchise.

The book, which hit shelves on March 19 and has already sold more than 1.5 million copies worldwide, is the second prequel to Collins' immensely popular dystopian series, following the 2020 release of "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes."

"Sunrise on the Reaping" takes place several decades before the events of "The Hunger Games" trilogy and centers on a younger version of Haymitch Abernathy during his own time as a District 12 tribute fighting in the Capitol arena.

Like "Ballad," the latest installment reveals key lore about the world of Panem, and fortunately for fans, it's also getting adapted for the big screen.

Here's everything we know about the movie so far. Light spoilers ahead for "Sunrise on the Reaping."

'Sunrise on the Reaping' will be the 6th 'Hunger Games' movie

Given that the book was released only recently, you may be surprised at how quickly studio bosses greenlit an adaptation.

In actuality, Lionsgate announced that it was turning the prequel book into a feature film even before it hit shelves.

The news of the forthcoming movie was shared just hours after the world learned in June 2024 that Collins was set to publish another "Hunger Games" story.

At the time, Deadline reported that the film — styled "The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping" — would hit screens on November 20, 2026.

Francis Lawrence, the filmmaker who helmed every movie in the series except the 2012 original, was reported to be in talks to return as director. Nina Jacobson and her producing partner Brad Simpson were confirmed as returning to produce the prequel under their Color Force banner.

The film is in early production, but young Haymitch hasn't been cast yet

The day before "Sunrise on the Reaping" was published, Jacobson spoke to Variety about the coming adaptation. She told the outlet her team has "a great draft" of the script still in progress and that they had "established our locations" for production.

"We're very far along for a book that's only going to come out tomorrow," she said.

Jacobson also said that her team hadn't cast anyone in the film yet, as they did not want to risk leaking anything about "Sunrise on the Reaping" by having actors read even a snippet of the script.

She told Variety that her team would look to Woody Harrelson, who played Haymitch in the original "Hunger Games" trilogy, for some inspiration when casting its star. She hopes the actor can capture the "mischief" Harrelson brought to the role without "impersonating" him.

"You want somebody who very credibly feels like they could be a young version of this character, before the trauma and grief and rage that the fallout of the Games create," Jacobson said to Variety. "Nobody can be Woody Harrelson but Woody Harrelson."

If the film follows the book, it will have a massive cast. Haymitch's Hunger Games features double the number of tributes who compete in the games, and Collins introduces readers to a new array of characters in District 12 that have connections to the other books in the series.

The novel also includes appearances from younger versions of "Hunger Games" favorites, like Effie Trinket and Beetee, played by Elizabeth Banks and Jeffrey Wright in the original trilogy.

Likewise, the film will provide a third iteration of Coriolanus Snow, whom fans followed as a young man in the first prequel and the aging villain in the three "Hunger Games" films.

Avoiding leaks

In her conversation with Variety, Jacobson also said she and Collins' team went to great lengths to protect the book from potential leaks as they started developing the next "Hunger Games" film.

For instance, rather than sending Jacobson and Lawrence copies of the manuscript, Jacobson said she and Lawrence had to go to the home of Collins' literary agent separately to read the "one copy of the book that lived at his house."

Jacobson said the book moved her immensely, making it even more difficult to keep her thoughts on the project to herself.

"I was on the edge of my seat, crying," Jacobson said of her experience reading the book. "I just was so moved by it and so energized by it, and then could not talk to anybody except for Francis, Suzanne, and our studio partners."