The early 2010s were a nostalgic time that was characterized by many things, one of them being the huge surge of young adult dystopian hit movies. In the lead of the dystopian wave was The Hunger Games, which came out in 2012. Despite the old-time boom, the Hunger Games franchise is still relevant to this day due to the ongoing movies that continue to be produced. However, the new movies and books, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and Sunrise on the Reaping, have noticeably decreased in quality.
Statistically, the original Hunger Games trilogy received average reviews higher than the new additions to the franchise, with the first two movies receiving more than an 80% average rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The newer movie, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, drastically dropped in its rating, with a 64% average.
The newcomer of the franchise, Sunrise on the Reaping, follows the story of Haymitch Abernathy as he is reaped for the second quarter quell, a version of the Games designed to be even more brutal than usual. The story traces his time in the arena and the losses that shape him into the cynical mentor seen in the original trilogy. While it offers insight into a character everyone loves, the plot leans heavily on plot patterns and ideas the series has already explored, making it feel more repetitive than revealing.
In most positive reviews of Sunrise on the Reaping, fans rejoice about how fun it was to read about their favorite childhood characters and that the nostalgia is amazing. But that’s just it. The only thing holding this story together is nostalgia. The “coincidental” cameos from characters from the original trilogy are the top motivators to finish the book. The author and the movie-makers both know that the movie will be a box office success because fans will already be drawn in just because of the old characters in the movie.
And that reliance on familiarity is exactly where the problem deepens. Instead of expanding the world in a meaningful way, the story continuously circles back to what audiences already know, prioritizing recognition over originality. The plot doesn’t take risks; it reuses the ones from the original trilogy. The emotional beats don’t shock; they remind. It becomes clear that the goal is not to challenge the audience, but to comfort them with something recognizable enough to guarantee engagement.
Typically, book-to-screen adaptations are years in the making, and that’s only after the book has reached best-selling standards with thousands of reviews. They happen in the first place because books already have a vast fan base, which reduces the risk of the movie being a box-office disaster and saves money on advertising. However, the Sunrise on the Reaping film was announced to be in the making on June 6, 2024, which was months before the book even came out on March 18, 2025. Producers didn’t need to read a single review or critique of what they were adapting because they knew nostalgia would win, and fans would watch anything to keep it alive.
Ultimately, the pattern is hard to ignore. From declining reviews to rushed production timelines and heavy dependence on nostalgia, Sunrise on the Reaping feels less like a meaningful addition to The Hunger Games and more like an attempt to extend its profitability. What once stood as a bold social and political critique now risks becoming exactly what it warned against: a production designed to keep audiences watching.
