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‘Hunger Games’ Prequel Reveals Villainous Leader’s Origin Story 

Actors Rachel Zegler, Tom Blyth and Josh Andres Rivera appear during a promotional event for the movie "Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes", in Times Square in New York City, US, November 1, 2023. (Reuters)
Actors Rachel Zegler, Tom Blyth and Josh Andres Rivera appear during a promotional event for the movie "Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes", in Times Square in New York City, US, November 1, 2023. (Reuters)
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‘Hunger Games’ Prequel Reveals Villainous Leader’s Origin Story 

Actors Rachel Zegler, Tom Blyth and Josh Andres Rivera appear during a promotional event for the movie "Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes", in Times Square in New York City, US, November 1, 2023. (Reuters)
Actors Rachel Zegler, Tom Blyth and Josh Andres Rivera appear during a promotional event for the movie "Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes", in Times Square in New York City, US, November 1, 2023. (Reuters)

It wasn't easy for director Francis Lawrence to transform "Hunger Games" franchise villain Coriolanus Snow into a compelling protagonist for a prequel film taking place 64 years before the hit films starring Jennifer Lawrence.

"We had to figure out a way to get an audience emotionally invested in him, to be behind him, to be rooting for him, to empathize with him," Lawrence told Reuters.

"The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" arrives in theaters on Nov. 17 and delves into the origin stories of some characters from the four previous films. In particular, it explores President Snow's journey to overseeing the brutal games in which young people must fight to the death in an arena for an event called "The Hunger Games."

Like the other films, the Lionsgate prequel is based on a novel by Suzanne Collins, released in 2020.

"Once we felt like we had the audience behind him, we still had to seed in layers of his ambition and layers of his greed and layers of the darkness and layers of his sort of hunger for power so that when he does turn, it feels honest, it feels truthful and believable," Lawrence added.

The older version of Snow from the original films was portrayed by Canadian actor Donald Sutherland and the younger version in the prequel is played by English actor Tom Blyth.

The cast also includes noteworthy actors Viola Davis as Dr. Volumnia, Hunter Schafer as Tigris Snow and Peter Dinklage as Casca Highbottom.

Snow will do anything to succeed, including agreeing to mentor one of the contestants in The Hunger Games, songstress Lucy Gray Baird, played by Rachel Zegler.

What starts as coaching Baird in hopes of bolstering his academic achievements transforms into a sequence of events that take Snow down a menacing path of betrayal.

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Entertainment

'Sonic 3' Bests 'Mufasa: The Lion King' at the Box Office

This image released by Paramount Pictures and Sega of America shows the character Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from "Sonic the Hedgehog 3." (Paramount Pictures and Sega of America, Inc. via AP)
This image released by Paramount Pictures and Sega of America shows the character Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from "Sonic the Hedgehog 3." (Paramount Pictures and Sega of America, Inc. via AP)
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'Sonic 3' Bests 'Mufasa: The Lion King' at the Box Office

This image released by Paramount Pictures and Sega of America shows the character Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from "Sonic the Hedgehog 3." (Paramount Pictures and Sega of America, Inc. via AP)
This image released by Paramount Pictures and Sega of America shows the character Sonic, voiced by Ben Schwartz, in a scene from "Sonic the Hedgehog 3." (Paramount Pictures and Sega of America, Inc. via AP)

In the holiday season battle of big-budget family movies, Paramount Pictures’ “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” sped past the Walt Disney Co.’s “Mufasa: The Lion King” to take the top spot at the box office ahead of the lucrative Christmas corridor in theaters.

“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” debuted with $62 million in ticket sales over the weekend, according to studio estimates. With strong reviews (86% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) and a high score from audiences (an “A” on CinemaScore), “Sonic 3” is well positioned to be the top choice in cinemas during the busiest moviegoing period of the year.

It was telling of some wider trends that “Sonic 3” — made for $122 million — bested one of Disney’s top properties. Videogame adaptations, once among the most derided movie genres, have emerged as one of the most dependable box office forces in recent years. The two previous “Sonic” movies together grossed more $700 million worldwide and the third installment appears likely to do better than both of them. A fourth “Sonic” movie is already in development.
“Mufasa,” however, was humbled in its opening weekend, coming in notably shy of expectations with $35 million in domestic ticket sales. The photorealistic “Lion King” prequel even opened wider than “Sonic 3,” launching on 4,100 theaters and gobbling up most IMAX screens, compared with 3,761 locations for “Sonic 3.”
Yet “Sonic 3” nearly doubled the haul for “Mufasa,” which cost more than $200 million to make. Disney could look to $87.2 million in international sales to help make up the difference. The third “Sonic” will rollout in most overseas markets in the coming weeks.
In director Jeff Fowler’s “Sonic 3,” Ben Schwartz returns as the voice of the hedgehog, alongside Tails the Fox (Colleen O’Shaughnessey), Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba) and Jim Carrey in scene-stealing dual roles as Dr. Robotnik and his grandfather.
“Moonlight” filmmaker Barry Jenkins directs “Mufasa's” voice cast, including Aaron Pierre, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Donald Glover, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Mads Mikkelsen and Blue Ivy Carter. It follows Jon Favreau’s 2019 photorealistic “The Lion King” remake, which made $1.66 billion globally despite mixed reviews. “Mufasa” didn’t come close to that film’s huge $191 million opening weekend.
Many of Disney’s live-action adaptations – including “Aladdin,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Jungle Book” – have been big hits. Others, such as “Dumbo,” “Mulan” and “The Little Mermaid,” have been less well received. More are on the way, including a new “Snow White” in March, “Lilo & Stitch” in May, and plans for “Moana” and “Tangled” to get the same live-action treatment.
Despite “Mufasa's” muted opening, Disney is still celebrating its strongest annual performance in years. The studio has accounted for more than $5 billion in ticket sales worldwide, including the year’s top two hits: “Inside Out 2” and “Deadpool and Wolverine.” The animated “Moana 2” is poised to round out the top three films of the year. In four weeks of release, it has collected $790.2 million globally, including $13.1 million in US and Canadian theaters over this weekend.
Though Christmas often sees some of the biggest releases of the year, November movies released around Thanksgiving really drove the box office this year. That includes “Moana 2” and Universal Pictures’ “Wicked,” which managed third place in its fifth weekend.
“Wicked,” the hit musical adaption starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, added $13.5 million in North American theaters to push its domestic total to $383.9 million.
Those films, among others, have led a Hollywood rebound in 2024. After a significant deficit earlier in the year, overall sales are drawing close to those of 2023. According to Comscore, the gap has narrowed to 4.4% behind last year's results. While that’s still significantly less than pre-pandemic years, it’s enough to flip the script on what once looked like a rough year for the movies.
Family films like “Inside Out 2,” “Moana 2” and “Sonic 3” have played a major role. Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst for Comscore, noted animated movies have accounted for 26% of this year's box office.
“The box office year was saved by the family audience being drawn to the multiplex,” said Dergarabedian.