The Canon Database

Releasing in Fall 2023, journey to the early years of the Hunger Games in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

• Release Date: November 17, 2023
• Content Type: Movie
• Description: “Experience the story of The Hunger Games — 64 years before Katniss Everdeen volunteered as tribute, and decades before Coriolanus Snow became the tyrannical President of Panem.”
• “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus (Tom Blyth) who is the last hope for his failing lineage, the once-proud Snow family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With his livelihood threatened, Snow is reluctantly assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler), a tribute from the impoverished District 12. But after Lucy Gray’s charm captivates the audience of Panem, Snow sees an opportunity to shift their fates. With everything he has worked for hanging in the balance, Snow unites with Lucy Gray to turn the odds in their favor. Battling his instincts for both good and evil, Snow sets out on a race against time to survive and reveal if he will ultimately become a songbird or a snake.” (Lionsgate)
• The cast includes:
  • Peter Dinklage as Casca Hightower (creator of the Hunger Games)
  • Jason Schwartzman as Lucretius Flickerman (ancestor to Caesar Flickerman)
  • Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia Gaul (the head game maker)
• You can see the film’s trailer here.
• Charts: The Hunger Games prequel made over $326 million at the global box office. The film spent its first two weekends in the top spot and five straight weeks in the top two. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes finished as the 14th highest-grossing movie of 2012.
• Reviews: The film has an 89% average score from audiences, according to Rotten Tomatoes.
• Purchase: Blu-ray