Jhaleil Swaby is the latest actor to join Lionsgate’s The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The Lake star will appear alongside an already stacked ensemble that includes Joseph Zada, Whitney Peak, Mckenna Grace, Jesse Plemons, Billy Porter, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Maya Hawke, Glenn Close, Elle Fanning, Ralph Fiennes, Kieran Culkin, and more.
Directed by franchise veteran Francis Lawrence, Sunrise on the Reaping is set 24 years before the events of the original Hunger Games and centers on the 50th Hunger Games — also known as the Second Quarter Quell. This edition comes with a grim twist: 48 tributes are reaped instead of the usual 24. At the heart of the story is 16-year-old Haymitch Abernathy (Zada), a clever and resourceful boy from District 12 whose path to survival will define his legacy.
The film is based on Suzanne Collins’s bestselling prequel novel, which sold 1.5 million copies globally in its first week — including 1.2 million in the U.S. alone. It will premiere in theaters on November 20, 2026. Billy Ray wrote the screenplay, with producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson returning under their Color Force banner. Cameron MacConomy serves as executive producer, with Meredith Wieck and Scott O’Brien overseeing for Lionsgate.
Swaby will portray Panache, an arrogant and aggressive career tribute from District 1, raised to view the Games as both a performance and a birthright. Known for his ruthlessness and inflated ego, Panache emerges early as a dominant force inside the arena — one of many obstacles Haymitch must outwit to survive.
The cast of Sunrise on the Reaping includes:
- Joseph Zada as Haymitch Abernathy
- Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove Baird
- Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner
- Billy Porter as Magno Stift
- Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee
- Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Beetee
- Lili Taylor as Mags
- Elle Fanning as Effie Trinket
- Ralph Fiennes as President Snow
- Glenn Close as Drusilla Sickle
- Kieran Culkin as Caesar Flickerman
- Ben Wang as Wyatt Callow
- Maya Hawke as Wiress
- Molly McCann as Louella McCoy
- Iona Bell as Lou Lou
With a fresh cast, a brutal twist, and one of Panem’s most legendary victors at its center, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated chapters in the billion-dollar franchise.