Ralph Fiennes has been cast to portray President Coriolanus Snow in Lionsgate's upcoming cinematic adaptation of The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping.

The acclaimed actor, known for roles in The Conclave and Harry Potter films, was confirmed for the project today via the official Hunger Games X/Twitter account. Fiennes joins an impressive roster of casting announcements for the prequel and faces the challenge of bringing one of the franchise's most pivotal characters to life.

The new film's timeline bridges the gap between Jennifer Lawrence's original Hunger Games quadrilogy and 2023's prequel, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. While the latter showed Tom Blyth's portrayal of Snow's transformation into Panem's ruthless leader (a role originally played by Donald Sutherland), Fiennes will depict the dictator during middle age, as the story focuses on District 12 tribute Haymitch Abernathy's rise to victory.

"We wanted to honor Donald Sutherland by casting one of contemporary cinema's finest actors to portray President Snow 24 years before Katniss Everdeen's arrival," producer Nina Jacobson stated. "Ralph's performance in Schindler's List left an indelible mark on me, and it's truly exciting to welcome him to the Hunger Games universe."

While Fiennes stands out as perhaps the most anticipated casting, several other notable actors are joining the project. Jesse Plemons (Breaking Bad, Civil War) will play a younger version of Philip Seymour Hoffman's Plutarch Heavensbee, while Joseph Zada (Total Control, Invisible Boys) takes on the role of Haymitch Abernathy.

President Snow.

The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping – in theaters November 20, 2026. pic.twitter.com/mj9gXk1hTt

The film adapts Suzanne Collins' 2025 novel and will hit theaters on November 20, 2026. Franchise director Francis Lawrence returns to helm the project with a screenplay by original Hunger Games writer Billy Ray. The production was officially announced last summer, with its first teaser trailer dropping this past April.