The Hunger Games movies were a sensation when they were in theaters, making Jennifer Lawrence into a household name in the process. While the book to screen adaptation was away for a few years, fans got to return to Panem thanks to Suzanne Collins' prequels, and their corresponding movies. While we're waiting for Sunrise on the Reaping to hit theaters, Collins recently made a comment about Snow and Katniss that seems to hint at another beloved character's fate.
What we know about Sunrise on the Reaping is limited, although fans of the novel are buckling up for an emotional ride. While speaking with People about the best order to read the Hunger Games books, Collins might have offered a hint at whether or not Rachel Zegler's Lucy Gray Baird is still alive in-universe. As she put it:
First, Lucy Gray stole his heart and, in his mind, betrayed him. She’s still out there, scraping out a living in the woods or in her ghost girl form. Either way, she haunts him. Then he murdered Lenore Dove, but somehow, she’s very much alive in Haymitch. And finally, along comes Katniss, who in the middle of the 74th Hunger Games sings a dying Rue the lullaby that Lucy Gray sang on their picnic years ago, winning over the audience with her help. He keeps trying to destroy the District 12 girls, but they just won’t die. Their desire for freedom endlessly challenges his government. Therein lies his obsession.
She's... still out there? That's definitely a hopeful message, and seemingly answers the biggest question about Songbirds and Snakes' ending. Both the novel and its movie adaptation left her fate ambiguous; Snow realized that she had run away, with fans wondering what happened to the Panem singer after her last scene. Given all the discourse, I have to assume that Hunger Games fans are going to be thrilled with Suzanne Collins' comments about the resident of District 12.
Rachel Zegler said she'd love to reprise her role as Lucy, so perhaps Collins' words are setting up a sequel to Songbirds and Snakes. Either way it's clear that the character's disappearance was key to President Snow becoming the cutthroat authoritarian leader we know him to be.
While it's unclear if The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will get a sequel, fans are eager to see Sunrise on the Reaping on the big screen this fall. The movie will tell the tale of the 50th Hunger Games, where Haymitch was ultimately the winner. Anticipation was already high, but reached a fever pitch when it was revealed that Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson would be reprising their roles as Katniss and Peeta respectively. The Hunger Games is becoming a bonafide cinematic universe, and now it feels like just about anything is possible.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping will hit theaters on November 20th as part of the 2026 movie release list. Fingers crossed we learn more about Lucy Gray sooner rather than later.
