The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping Release Date in Ukraine, Cast and Plot

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is the new film set in Panem, and the question everyone asks is its release date. The short answer: the film opens in Ukrainian cinemas on November 19, 2026, and in the US on November 20. In Ukraine the film is released under a title that translates as The Hunger Games: Dawn Before the Reaping. It tells the story of a young Haymitch Abernathy, who is sent into the 50th Hunger Games. Below are the dates, the cast, the plot without spoilers and every film in the series in order. We rely on cinema chain pages, the studio’s official channels and Wikipedia.

In short

The Ukrainian premiere is on November 19, 2026, with a Ukrainian dub. Planeta Kino lists screenings in the original language with Ukrainian subtitles from November 26. The running time is 2 hours 38 minutes. The director is Francis Lawrence, who made the four previous films in the franchise. Joseph Zada plays Haymitch, and Ralph Fiennes plays President Snow. It is the sixth Hunger Games film and the second prequel after The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping release date in Ukraine

The November 19, 2026 date is listed on the film’s pages at the Planeta Kino and Multiplex cinema chains. The film is shown in Ukrainian and is adapted for people with visual and hearing impairments through the Kinozir app. The pages still disagree on the age rating: Planeta Kino lists 16+, while Multiplex gives a provisional 12+. It is worth checking the final rating before buying a ticket. According to Wikipedia, the film opens in the US on November 20 in IMAX, 4DX, ScreenX and D-Box, and the world premiere already took place in London on October 28, 2026.

When	What happened
June 2024	Suzanne Collins announced a new novel, and Lionsgate greenlit the adaptation right away
March 18, 2025	The novel Sunrise on the Reaping was published
July – November 28, 2025	Filming in Spain and Germany, with the last day of shooting in Berlin
November 20, 2025	First teaser, exactly a year before the premiere
April 13, 2026	First trailer
September 16, 2026	Second trailer
October 28, 2026	World premiere in London
November 19, 2026	Premiere in Ukraine
November 20, 2026	Premiere in the US

What the film is about

The story takes place 24 years before the first film. Sixteen-year-old Haymitch Abernathy from District 12 is chosen to compete in the 50th Hunger Games. Every 25th edition, known as a Quarter Quell, comes with a special twist, and this time each district must send twice as many tributes to the Capitol. In the distributor’s official synopsis, Haymitch forms an unexpected alliance with fellow tribute Maysilee Donner and joins those who want to challenge the Capitol and President Snow.

The film is based on the 2025 novel by Suzanne Collins, called Dawn Before the Reaping on Ukrainian Wikipedia. It is a sequel to The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023) and at the same time a prequel to the 2012 original. Anyone who remembers Haymitch from the original four films knows how these games ended for him, but Lawrence, according to Wikipedia, wanted the film to work for viewers who have never seen the series.

Cast and characters

In the original four films Haymitch was played by Woody Harrelson, Plutarch by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Effie by Elizabeth Banks. Now these characters are young, and new actors play them. The cast is listed as English Wikipedia gives it.

Character	Played by
Haymitch Abernathy, a District 12 tribute	Joseph Zada
Maysilee Donner, a District 12 tribute	Mckenna Grace
Lenore Dove Baird, Haymitch’s girlfriend	Whitney Peak
Plutarch Heavensbee, a young Games cameraman	Jesse Plemons
Coriolanus Snow, president of Panem	Ralph Fiennes
Effie Trinket, a stylist for the tributes	Elle Fanning
Caesar Flickerman, the Games host	Kieran Culkin
Drusilla Sickle, an escort for the tributes	Glenn Close
Wiress, victor of the 49th Games	Maya Hawke
Beetee Latier, victor of the 34th Games	Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Wyatt Callow, a District 12 tribute	Ben Wang
Magno Stift, a stylist	Billy Porter

Who made it and where it was filmed

The director is Francis Lawrence, who made Catching Fire, both parts of Mockingjay and The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. The screenplay is by Billy Ray, who worked on the first film in the series, and Michael Lesslie. James Newton Howard scores the franchise for the sixth time. Filming ran from late July to November 28, 2025, in Spain, including Somiedo and Teverga in Asturias, and in Germany. The budget, according to Wikipedia, is $170–200 million. The song album comes out on November 13, 2026, and Howard’s score album on the day of the US premiere.

The Hunger Games movies in order

We do not have a separate watch-order article, so here is the short version. The new film is the sixth by release.

#	Film	Year	Director
1	The Hunger Games	2012	Gary Ross
2	The Hunger Games: Catching Fire	2013	Francis Lawrence
3	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1	2014	Francis Lawrence
4	The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2	2015	Francis Lawrence
5	The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes	2023	Francis Lawrence
6	The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping	2026	Francis Lawrence

In story order things look different. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes comes first, with the 10th Games and a young Snow. Next is Sunrise on the Reaping with the 50th Games, and 24 years later comes Katniss Everdeen’s story in four films released from 2012 to 2015. Newcomers can start at either end: the original four are usually watched in release order, and the prequels work as standalone stories.

Trailer

Lionsgate released the first teaser on November 20, 2025, the first trailer on April 13, 2026, and the second on September 16, 2026, on the Lionsgate Movies YouTube channel. Besides the trailers, the studio released a separate Meet Haymitch featurette with behind-the-scenes footage, and in August the in-universe Capitol website Capitol.tv came back online. Ukrainian versions of the trailers are available on the film’s pages at the cinema chains.

FAQ

When does The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping come out in Ukraine?

On November 19, 2026, with a Ukrainian dub. Planeta Kino lists original-language screenings from November 26. The US premiere is on November 20.

What is the film called in Ukrainian cinemas?

Its Ukrainian title translates as The Hunger Games: Dawn Before the Reaping. The original title is The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.

Who plays young Haymitch?

Australian actor Joseph Zada. In the 2012–2015 films Haymitch was played by Woody Harrelson.

How long is the film?

2 hours 38 minutes, or 158 minutes.

In what order should I watch The Hunger Games?

By release: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay Parts 1 and 2, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, Sunrise on the Reaping. In story order, The Ballad comes first, then Sunrise, and then Katniss’s story.