Hunter Schafer has revealed that she no longer wishes to accept transgender roles after her breakout performance in HBO’s young adult drama Euphoria.
The 25-year-old actress told GQ that she had been offered “tons of trans roles” but does not want her gender identity to define her work in the future.
“I don’t want to be [reduced to] that, and I find it ultimately demeaning to me and what I want to do,” Schafer said. “I worked so hard to get to where I am, past these really hard points in my transition, and now I just want to be a girl and finally move on.”
Schafer said her ability to reject trans roles was a “privilege,” but she believes that she can further the cause of the transgender community simply by honing her craft.
The actress recently appeared as Tigris in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,...
The 25-year-old actress told GQ that she had been offered “tons of trans roles” but does not want her gender identity to define her work in the future.
“I don’t want to be [reduced to] that, and I find it ultimately demeaning to me and what I want to do,” Schafer said. “I worked so hard to get to where I am, past these really hard points in my transition, and now I just want to be a girl and finally move on.”
Schafer said her ability to reject trans roles was a “privilege,” but she believes that she can further the cause of the transgender community simply by honing her craft.
The actress recently appeared as Tigris in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,...
- 4/3/2024
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
Hunter Schafer is opening up about being one of the most famous trans people in the world right now and how she feels guilt for “not being more of a spokesperson.”
The 25-year-old actress is best known for playing Jules on Euphoria and she recently starred as Tigris in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Hunter is on the cover of GQ‘s new issue and explained why she has been turning down the trans roles she’s been offered.
Keep reading to find out more…
In the interview, Hunter said that she’s hoping we’ll get to a point where being trans is something that will not be mentioned when discussing her name.
“It has not just happened naturally by any means. If I let it happen, it would still be giving ‘Transsexual Actress’ before every article ever,” Hunter said. “As soon as I say [the word 'trans'], it gets blastoff.
The 25-year-old actress is best known for playing Jules on Euphoria and she recently starred as Tigris in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Hunter is on the cover of GQ‘s new issue and explained why she has been turning down the trans roles she’s been offered.
Keep reading to find out more…
In the interview, Hunter said that she’s hoping we’ll get to a point where being trans is something that will not be mentioned when discussing her name.
“It has not just happened naturally by any means. If I let it happen, it would still be giving ‘Transsexual Actress’ before every article ever,” Hunter said. “As soon as I say [the word 'trans'], it gets blastoff.
- 4/2/2024
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
The fate of the third season of Euphoria seems murkier than ever.
Following the massive success of Euphoria‘s Season One in 2019, Season Two was hit with the Covid pandemic and didn’t air until 2022. Afterwards, the tragic death of Angus Cloud, who played the beloved character Fezco, and the Hollywood writers and actors strikes, led to multiple delays and setbacks for the third installment.
On Monday, the streaming giant revealed that while creator Sam Levinson was still “committed” to making a third season of the hit drama, any projected premiere dates have been postponed.
Following the massive success of Euphoria‘s Season One in 2019, Season Two was hit with the Covid pandemic and didn’t air until 2022. Afterwards, the tragic death of Angus Cloud, who played the beloved character Fezco, and the Hollywood writers and actors strikes, led to multiple delays and setbacks for the third installment.
On Monday, the streaming giant revealed that while creator Sam Levinson was still “committed” to making a third season of the hit drama, any projected premiere dates have been postponed.
- 3/29/2024
- by Charisma Madarang
- Rollingstone.com
Euphoria Season 3 is coming — just not soon. In a new statement on Monday, HBO revealed that while creator Sam Levinson was still “committed” to making a third season of the hit drama, any projected premiere dates have been postponed. Variety reported that scripts for Season Three are still being written.
“HBO and Sam Levinson remain committed to making an exceptional third season,” an HBO spokesperson told the outlet. “In the interim, we are allowing our in-demand cast to pursue other opportunities.”
Delays seem to be part of Euphoria‘s DNA.
“HBO and Sam Levinson remain committed to making an exceptional third season,” an HBO spokesperson told the outlet. “In the interim, we are allowing our in-demand cast to pursue other opportunities.”
Delays seem to be part of Euphoria‘s DNA.
- 3/25/2024
- by Tomás Mier
- Rollingstone.com
After an exhaustive run starring in film roles like Anyone But You, Madame Web, and now Immaculate, Sydney Sweeney hints that she’ll be heading back to Euphoria.
In an interview with MTV, The White Lotus actress held her cards close to her chest responding “Maybe” and “I don’t know” to MTV host Josh Horowitz’s questions about whether Sweeney planned to get in front of the camera or read any scripts. When asked about her anticipation for resuming production, though, the actress said she was excited and called...
In an interview with MTV, The White Lotus actress held her cards close to her chest responding “Maybe” and “I don’t know” to MTV host Josh Horowitz’s questions about whether Sweeney planned to get in front of the camera or read any scripts. When asked about her anticipation for resuming production, though, the actress said she was excited and called...
- 3/14/2024
- by Kalia Richardson
- Rollingstone.com
"Hunger Games" fans returned to Panem in 2023 with the release of the prequel "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes," about the teen years of future President Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) and his ill-fated romance with folk musician Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler). The movie did well enough at the box office and was mostly praised by critics (/Film's review was more mixed) — but is all that enough for a sequel?
Upon the release of "Ballad" in November 2023, several members of the cast and creative team sat down with People magazine to answer this question. The main takeaway from their answers? It depends on Suzanne Collins, author of "The Hunger Games." For reference, "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" is adapted from Collins' eponymous novel (published in 2020), and she's given no indication that she's writing a sequel. Without literary source material, there won't be a film sequel either.
"The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes...
Upon the release of "Ballad" in November 2023, several members of the cast and creative team sat down with People magazine to answer this question. The main takeaway from their answers? It depends on Suzanne Collins, author of "The Hunger Games." For reference, "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" is adapted from Collins' eponymous novel (published in 2020), and she's given no indication that she's writing a sequel. Without literary source material, there won't be a film sequel either.
"The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes...
- 1/23/2024
- by Devin Meenan
- Slash Film
Would it be a stretch to call "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" a surprise success? Between Hollywood's many (and sweaty) failed attempts to score a hit tentpole this year and eight years having passed since "Mockingjay -- Part 2" ended the original "Hunger Games" tetralogy on a box office low, there was fair reason to suspect "Songbirds and Snakes" would prove to be yet another financially disappointing return to the well. Yet, despite that, the "Hunger Games" prequel has done alright by itself since its opening last month, trucking along to a global box office haul in the vicinity of $300 million.
It absolutely helped that director Francis Lawrence (who's helmed every "Hunger Games" film to date after the first movie) kept his budget down to a relatively modest $100 million. "Songbirds and Snakes" itself was perhaps the most divisive entry in the series thus far, earning a mixed...
It absolutely helped that director Francis Lawrence (who's helmed every "Hunger Games" film to date after the first movie) kept his budget down to a relatively modest $100 million. "Songbirds and Snakes" itself was perhaps the most divisive entry in the series thus far, earning a mixed...
- 12/18/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Director Francis Lawrence spoke to us about adapting Suzanne Collins’ mammoth novel and what didn’t make it into the film and one character whose arc changed significantly from the book.
Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes is the longest book in the franchise. Equally, Francis Lawrence’s film adaptation is the longest one of the five The Hunger Games films, but only by 11 minutes, as he pointed out during our exclusive interview.
Obviously, not everything from the book made it into the film and similarly, not everything we spoke to Lawrence about made it into the interview piece we published last week. As well as talking about digging into President Snow’s backstory and returning to Panem, we also spoke about the difficulties of adapting such a huge book.
“It’s definitely a process. We worked on the script for close to two years...
Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes is the longest book in the franchise. Equally, Francis Lawrence’s film adaptation is the longest one of the five The Hunger Games films, but only by 11 minutes, as he pointed out during our exclusive interview.
Obviously, not everything from the book made it into the film and similarly, not everything we spoke to Lawrence about made it into the interview piece we published last week. As well as talking about digging into President Snow’s backstory and returning to Panem, we also spoke about the difficulties of adapting such a huge book.
“It’s definitely a process. We worked on the script for close to two years...
- 11/22/2023
- by Maria Lattila
- Film Stories
This post contains spoilers for "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes."
"The Hunger Games" prequel story "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" flips the perspective of the original trilogy, this time looking outwards at the districts of Panem from the viewpoint of the Capitol. Specifically, it's the story of the future president and over-arching villain of "The Hunger Games," Coriolanus Snow -- with Tom Blyth playing an 18-year-old version of the character portrayed by Donald Sutherland in the previous films.
Though President Snow was at the very height of the Capitol's privileged elite, "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" reveals that Coriolanus is no stronger to hard times. In the film's opening sequence, set during the Rebellion, a five-year-old Coriolanus is scrounging for scraps of food in the street when he witnesses a starving neighbor cannibalizing a dead body to stay alive. And even a decade after the Capitol retakes control,...
"The Hunger Games" prequel story "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" flips the perspective of the original trilogy, this time looking outwards at the districts of Panem from the viewpoint of the Capitol. Specifically, it's the story of the future president and over-arching villain of "The Hunger Games," Coriolanus Snow -- with Tom Blyth playing an 18-year-old version of the character portrayed by Donald Sutherland in the previous films.
Though President Snow was at the very height of the Capitol's privileged elite, "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" reveals that Coriolanus is no stronger to hard times. In the film's opening sequence, set during the Rebellion, a five-year-old Coriolanus is scrounging for scraps of food in the street when he witnesses a starving neighbor cannibalizing a dead body to stay alive. And even a decade after the Capitol retakes control,...
- 11/19/2023
- by Hannah Shaw-Williams
- Slash Film
Do external influences like environment and situations factor more in shaping a person’s entire worldview? Or is it the inherent willingness to give in to a side—freedom of choice—that plays the decisive role? The prequel feature of the Hunger Games trilogy, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, adapted from the novel of the same name written by Suzanne Collins, asks these age-old questions as it traces back the origins of Coriolanus Snow, the former President of Panem whose reign of tyranny was ended by ‘Mockingjay’ Katniss Everdeen and her comrades.
The key attractions of the main Hunger Games series were how the central class conflict intrigue was showcased through interesting characters, theatrical flair, unique dystopian world-building, and the brutal yet vivid open-world battle royale signifying the titular game. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, however, misses out on most of these aspects in its effort to jam-pack...
The key attractions of the main Hunger Games series were how the central class conflict intrigue was showcased through interesting characters, theatrical flair, unique dystopian world-building, and the brutal yet vivid open-world battle royale signifying the titular game. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, however, misses out on most of these aspects in its effort to jam-pack...
- 11/19/2023
- by Siddhartha Das
- Film Fugitives
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes brought us back to the world of Panem, and fans of the franchise are likely wondering if there is more content on the way.
The answer is not immediately clear. If you were unaware, the latest movie is based on a prequel novel written by author Suzanne Collins. As a result, it focused on a specific story, which did play out in the first movie.
However, the movie’s director and producer both had an idea for a sequel, and it would focus on one specific relationship.
Read more about the chances for a sequel to the Hunger Games prequel movie…
Speaking to People, director Francis Lawrence and producer Nina Jacobson teased that they would like to focus on the relationship between Tigris (Hunter Schafer) and President Snow (Tom Blyth).
If you were unaware, the pair are cousins, who have a...
The answer is not immediately clear. If you were unaware, the latest movie is based on a prequel novel written by author Suzanne Collins. As a result, it focused on a specific story, which did play out in the first movie.
However, the movie’s director and producer both had an idea for a sequel, and it would focus on one specific relationship.
Read more about the chances for a sequel to the Hunger Games prequel movie…
Speaking to People, director Francis Lawrence and producer Nina Jacobson teased that they would like to focus on the relationship between Tigris (Hunter Schafer) and President Snow (Tom Blyth).
If you were unaware, the pair are cousins, who have a...
- 11/19/2023
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
The first installment in the “Hunger Games” book series was published in 2008 and followed by the first film adaptation in March 2012. Over a decade later, the franchise has been revived with the prequel film “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” and all the original fans of the series are grown up—including actress Hunter Schafer, who stars as Tigris in the latest film, and who was “obsessed” with the original series.
While speaking with Jimmy Fallon Friday night, Schafer revealed that her “Hunger Games” fandom ran deep and that as a child, she even dressed as someone from the Capitol for Halloween one year — complete with her own self-designed costume.
Fallon told Schafer that it’s “cool” to be back in the studio speaking to actors about movies because “you’ve been a fan of ‘The Hunger Games’ since you were a kid.”
“Oh, well, I mean, for Halloween, I...
While speaking with Jimmy Fallon Friday night, Schafer revealed that her “Hunger Games” fandom ran deep and that as a child, she even dressed as someone from the Capitol for Halloween one year — complete with her own self-designed costume.
Fallon told Schafer that it’s “cool” to be back in the studio speaking to actors about movies because “you’ve been a fan of ‘The Hunger Games’ since you were a kid.”
“Oh, well, I mean, for Halloween, I...
- 11/18/2023
- by Stephanie Kaloi
- The Wrap
"The Hunger Games" prequel "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" isn't the beginning of a new saga, like the fizzled-out "Fantastic Beasts" series was to the "Harry Potter" movies. Instead, it's a standalone origin story based on Suzanne Collins' 2020 novel, which reveals how future Panem president Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth) helped shape the Hunger Games from a depressing slaughterfest into must-watch entertainment. But eight years after the release of "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 2," are the Hunger Games still the box office draw they once were?
The short answer is no, but that doesn't mean "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" is a bomb in the making. After grossing $19.1 million on Friday (including Thursday previews), the "Hunger Games" prequel is on track to gross somewhere north of $45 million at the box office in its opening weekend, per The Hollywood Reporter, with the studio hopeful that it could hit $50 million.
The short answer is no, but that doesn't mean "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" is a bomb in the making. After grossing $19.1 million on Friday (including Thursday previews), the "Hunger Games" prequel is on track to gross somewhere north of $45 million at the box office in its opening weekend, per The Hollywood Reporter, with the studio hopeful that it could hit $50 million.
- 11/18/2023
- by Hannah Shaw-Williams
- Slash Film
Featured in bits throughout the official trailer for "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" is Hunter Schafer, who plays a young Capitol citizen who's also an apparent friend/confidant of young Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth), the guy who will one day become the tyrannical President of Panem. It's a delight for "Euphoria" fans to see Schafer here, even if her role as a Capitol citizen doesn't imply great things about her character.
But Schafer's character in the trailer doesn't seem like what we'd expect from a Capitol citizen, and that's part of why she was cast in the first place. "So many people came in and read, [but] they were thinking more of Liz Banks' Effie Trinket than they were of Tigris," director Francis Lawrence told Entertainment Weekly recently. "They're putting on this Capitol [affect], and it's just so phony. Hunter came in and did the scene, and she was so endearing and warm.
But Schafer's character in the trailer doesn't seem like what we'd expect from a Capitol citizen, and that's part of why she was cast in the first place. "So many people came in and read, [but] they were thinking more of Liz Banks' Effie Trinket than they were of Tigris," director Francis Lawrence told Entertainment Weekly recently. "They're putting on this Capitol [affect], and it's just so phony. Hunter came in and did the scene, and she was so endearing and warm.
- 11/17/2023
- by Michael Boyle
- Slash Film
So what’s one of the biggest complaints about modern movies (aside from pricey concession snacks)? Much of the grumbling concerns the many sequels to successful films, often leading to a franchise. Last week we had The Marvels and there’s another Trolls romp bouncing into the multiplex this weekend. In a bit of convoluted logic, many studio execs may think, “If you’re sick of sequels, how about a prequel, instead?”. Yes, it’s semantics but it’s a way of bringing in fans of the original while not having to pay the big salaries of those older pricier casts. Now, we’ve got that “master candy maker” waiting in the wings to spruce his chocolate factory right before Christmas, and for Thanksgiving, we’re going back to that dreary dystopian future of a quartet of flicks we thought had concluded eight years ago. But since the author of...
- 11/16/2023
- by Jim Batts
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Hunter Schafer reached a euphoric state while filming the upcoming music-centric feature “Mother Mary.”
The “Euphoria” breakout star has a supporting role in David Lowery’s upcoming drama, which follows a pop star (Anne Hathaway) who has a twisted romantic relationship with a fashion designer (Michaela Coel). Schafer plays Hilda, the personal assistant to Coel’s co-lead character. The film is billed as an epic pop melodrama and features original songs by Jack Antonoff and Charli Xcx. Kaia Gerber and Jessica Brown-Findlay also star.
“It was a lot of fun and I think people are going to be mind-blown,” Schafer told IndieWire of the A24 film while on the “Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” premiere’s red carpet. “I was mind-blown.”
“Mother Mary” filmed in Germany throughout the SAG-AFTRA strike due to an interim agreement.
Schafer tapped into a similar fashion-centric character for franchise prequel “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes...
The “Euphoria” breakout star has a supporting role in David Lowery’s upcoming drama, which follows a pop star (Anne Hathaway) who has a twisted romantic relationship with a fashion designer (Michaela Coel). Schafer plays Hilda, the personal assistant to Coel’s co-lead character. The film is billed as an epic pop melodrama and features original songs by Jack Antonoff and Charli Xcx. Kaia Gerber and Jessica Brown-Findlay also star.
“It was a lot of fun and I think people are going to be mind-blown,” Schafer told IndieWire of the A24 film while on the “Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” premiere’s red carpet. “I was mind-blown.”
“Mother Mary” filmed in Germany throughout the SAG-AFTRA strike due to an interim agreement.
Schafer tapped into a similar fashion-centric character for franchise prequel “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes...
- 11/16/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson and Vincent Perella
- Indiewire
Long before there was a Katniss Everdeen, future victor of the Hunger Games and Panem’s No. 1 revolutionary icon, there was Lucy Gray Baird — a young woman who also hailed from District 12 and found herself recruited as a tribute in a fascist world’s annual entertainment death march. She had a beautiful voice, a steel backbone, and enough wits to have the odds ever in her favor for the 10th edition of the Hunger Games. They were a little different back then — no one had figured out how to employ...
- 11/16/2023
- by David Fear
- Rollingstone.com
Tom Blyth as Coriolanus Snow and Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird in ‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ (Photo Credit: Murray Close)
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes substitutes a songstress for a huntress and the morally compromised, bankrupt scion of a once powerful Capital family for the heroic endeavors of The Hunger Games’ Peeta and Gale. A prequel set decades before Katniss entered the arena, Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is, at its core, an examination of why the Hunger Games exists.
What is the purpose of this gruesome spectacle? Can this annual butchering of children be justified as an effective method of keeping District rebels in check? Is there any moral justification for something as barbaric as pitting innocent children against each other in a fight to the death?
Those questions are woven into the film (just as they are in Suzanne...
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes substitutes a songstress for a huntress and the morally compromised, bankrupt scion of a once powerful Capital family for the heroic endeavors of The Hunger Games’ Peeta and Gale. A prequel set decades before Katniss entered the arena, Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is, at its core, an examination of why the Hunger Games exists.
What is the purpose of this gruesome spectacle? Can this annual butchering of children be justified as an effective method of keeping District rebels in check? Is there any moral justification for something as barbaric as pitting innocent children against each other in a fight to the death?
Those questions are woven into the film (just as they are in Suzanne...
- 11/16/2023
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
Hunter Schafer says 'The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes' was "a challenge".The 24-year-old 'Euphoria' actress - who shot to fame playing Jules Vaughn in the HBO teen drama - stars in the prequel movie as Tigris, the companion of Panem President Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth), and as she's just starting out in her acting career joining the blockbuster franchise was a big deal.She said: "Tigris kind of feels like the first character piece I've really done that's not like a teenage girl who is kind of like one step away from who I am."It was like a challenge for me." "I'm still new to acting."It's a full-circle moment for Hunter, as she was a 'Hunger Games' nerd at school.She shared: "I was a huge fan when I was in middle school... to the point where I was like doing fan...
- 11/16/2023
- by Lizzie Baker
- Bang Showbiz
Hunter Schafer is describing the challenges of her role in The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
In the Hunger Games prequel, directed by Francis Lawrence, Hunter plays Tigris, the loyal cousin of Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth).
At the film’s New York premiere on Wednesday (November 15), the 24-year-old actress spoke about what she found most difficult while portraying Tigris in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Keep reading to find out more…
“Tigris kind of feels like the first character piece I’ve really done that’s not like a teenage girl who is kind of like one step away from who I am,” Hunter told Et. “It was like a challenge for me.”
Hunter is best known for playing Jules Vaughn in the popular HBO series Euphoria. A far cry from a simple high-school girl, Tigris is a fashion designer in her 20s.
Although Hunter added...
In the Hunger Games prequel, directed by Francis Lawrence, Hunter plays Tigris, the loyal cousin of Coriolanus Snow (Tom Blyth).
At the film’s New York premiere on Wednesday (November 15), the 24-year-old actress spoke about what she found most difficult while portraying Tigris in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Keep reading to find out more…
“Tigris kind of feels like the first character piece I’ve really done that’s not like a teenage girl who is kind of like one step away from who I am,” Hunter told Et. “It was like a challenge for me.”
Hunter is best known for playing Jules Vaughn in the popular HBO series Euphoria. A far cry from a simple high-school girl, Tigris is a fashion designer in her 20s.
Although Hunter added...
- 11/16/2023
- by Just Jared
- Just Jared
The book The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, written by Suzanne Collins, has been adapted for the screen by director Francis Lawrence, alongside screenwriters Michael Lesslie and Michael Arndt. The film delves into the chillingly formative years of Panem, a society not yet inured to the brutality of its central spectacle. This prequel, starkly contrasting its YA predecessors, morphs into a harrowing adult political thriller, unraveling the genesis of the Hunger Games with a disturbingly poignant lens — that is, when it can get out of its own way.
The film stars Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Viola Davis, Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman and Hunter Schafer.
The film starts during the dark days before the first Hunger Games. Two children, Coriolanus (Dexter Sol Ansell) and Tigris (Rosa Gotzler) are running for their lives in a snowy Panem. They arrive at the home of their grandmother and receive news that...
The film stars Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Viola Davis, Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman and Hunter Schafer.
The film starts during the dark days before the first Hunger Games. Two children, Coriolanus (Dexter Sol Ansell) and Tigris (Rosa Gotzler) are running for their lives in a snowy Panem. They arrive at the home of their grandmother and receive news that...
- 11/15/2023
- by Valerie Complex
- Deadline Film + TV
Rachel Zegler and Tom Blyth in The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds And SnakesPhoto: Murray Close/Lionsgate
The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes arrives in theaters this week, which means it’s time to take the long train ride back to Panem. It’s been almost...
The Hunger Games: The Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes arrives in theaters this week, which means it’s time to take the long train ride back to Panem. It’s been almost...
- 11/15/2023
- by Emma Keates
- avclub.com
There is something to be said about the cycle of sci-fi films made in the late 1960s and early ‘70s. While the decades to come would be defined by Star Wars pew-pews, for a little while there, the genre was fixated almost wholly on grim cynicism, downbeat endings, and unadulterated dystopia. I’m a sucker for all that jazz, even when it’s at its silliest. That would be your “Soylent Green is people!” films or the sequels to Chuck Heston crying, “Take your stinking paws off me, you damn dirty ape!” This could also explain why I sat with a smile for nearly all 157 minutes of Francis Lawrence’s The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. It’s grandiose, kooky, and sometimes cruel. But despite being adapted from a YA book, this gray universe imagined by Suzanne Collins still feels refreshingly adult in our own modern multiplex land of bread and circuses.
- 11/15/2023
- by David Crow
- Den of Geek
It’s hard to build much intrigue into whether a love-struck teen with a seemingly gentle heart and firm moral compass will betray those who trust him and cross over to the dark side when his name is Coriolanus Snow and we know from four previous films that he will grow up to be an evil overlord played with chilling authority by Donald Sutherland. Even less so once he joins the fascistic “Peacekeeper” ranks and trades his floppy blond locks for a Hitler Youth buzz cut.
That’s just one of the limitations of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, a lumbering prequel to the blockbuster battle royale series based on Suzanne Collins’ YA novels, the global grosses for which are nearing $3 billion.
Beyond the fact that Collins penned a 2020 follow-up set 64 years before the events of the original book trilogy, and of course the market reality...
That’s just one of the limitations of The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, a lumbering prequel to the blockbuster battle royale series based on Suzanne Collins’ YA novels, the global grosses for which are nearing $3 billion.
Beyond the fact that Collins penned a 2020 follow-up set 64 years before the events of the original book trilogy, and of course the market reality...
- 11/9/2023
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The release of "The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes," the "Hunger Games" prequel, is just around the corner, and it's the perfect time to catch up on everything "Hunger Games" before the release of the film on Nov. 17. The prequel, which takes place 64 years prior to the events of the Hunger Games trilogy, follows the story of Coriolanus Snow (played by Tom Blyth) and his relationship with Lucy Gray Baird, a tribute and eventual victor of the 10th Hunger Games (played by Rachel Zegler).
The film will introduce new characters like Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage), the dean of the Academy, and Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis), the head game maker. But the prequel will also feature familiar characters like Tigris Snow, Coriolanus's cousin, and one of the key characters that helped Katniss in the Capitol in "Mockingjay." In the original movies, Tigris is played by Eugenie Bondurant, but she'll be...
The film will introduce new characters like Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage), the dean of the Academy, and Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis), the head game maker. But the prequel will also feature familiar characters like Tigris Snow, Coriolanus's cousin, and one of the key characters that helped Katniss in the Capitol in "Mockingjay." In the original movies, Tigris is played by Eugenie Bondurant, but she'll be...
- 11/4/2023
- by Athena Sobhan
- Popsugar.com
Are you, are you… excited to see the new Hunger Games movie? We sure are! And that excitement has been ramped up an extra notch today with the release of a brand new trailer, which includes a ton of new looks at the film. Watch it here:
Adapted from Suzanne Collins’ 2020 novel, The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes is a prequel to the Jennifer Lawrence movies, set 64 years earlier during the tenth annual Hunger Games. It follows Donald Sutherland’s President Coriolanus Snow from the original films as a youngster, played here by Tom Blyth, as he mentors District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) through the Games. As he develops feelings for Lucy Gray, his whole belief system – and life in the Capitol – is called into question.
There’s all sorts to sink our teeth into here – we see a whole lot more action from within the arena itself,...
Adapted from Suzanne Collins’ 2020 novel, The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes is a prequel to the Jennifer Lawrence movies, set 64 years earlier during the tenth annual Hunger Games. It follows Donald Sutherland’s President Coriolanus Snow from the original films as a youngster, played here by Tom Blyth, as he mentors District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) through the Games. As he develops feelings for Lucy Gray, his whole belief system – and life in the Capitol – is called into question.
There’s all sorts to sink our teeth into here – we see a whole lot more action from within the arena itself,...
- 9/20/2023
- by Sophie Butcher
- Empire - Movies
"The Hunger Games" came, saw, conquered, and left — and now, lo and behold, it's back. After spawning an entire subgenre of dystopian teen cinema and then falling out of cultural favor due to a controversial final installment, the billion-dollar film series based on Suzanne Collins' acclaimed young adult novel trilogy will take center stage again thanks to "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes."
The upcoming film adapts Collins' prequel novel about the 10th Hunger Games and the youth of the original series' villain, Coriolanus Snow. Its marketing cycle is already stirring up major nostalgia and reappraisals for, when all is said and done, one of the strongest and most interesting blockbuster film franchises of the 2010s. Like every prequel, "Tbosas" also, of course, raises questions among casual fans and the uninitiated about when it's supposed to take place, and how it connects to the saga of Katniss Everdeen, et al.
The upcoming film adapts Collins' prequel novel about the 10th Hunger Games and the youth of the original series' villain, Coriolanus Snow. Its marketing cycle is already stirring up major nostalgia and reappraisals for, when all is said and done, one of the strongest and most interesting blockbuster film franchises of the 2010s. Like every prequel, "Tbosas" also, of course, raises questions among casual fans and the uninitiated about when it's supposed to take place, and how it connects to the saga of Katniss Everdeen, et al.
- 9/9/2023
- by Leo Noboru Lima
- Slash Film
‘The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’ (or ‘The Hunger Games 5’) has taken the whole fanbase by storm, as the movie will be a prequel to the old films. The film recently released posters of its key new characters, with Peter Dinklage, Tom Blythe, and Viola Davis, looking particularly intriguing, giving off the vibes of an older time, set long before the movies.
Peter Dinklage: Playing the role of Casca Highbottom, the Dean of the academy, and creator of the Games himself, Dinklage looks both suave, and yet dangerously powerful. A figure of authority, who ought not to be messed with. Much as it was, with Corionalus Snow, Casca is far more devious than the eye can see.
Tom Blythe: A very crucial part of the film, Tom Blythe plays the younger version of the conniving Coriolanus Snow in ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’, who was the...
Peter Dinklage: Playing the role of Casca Highbottom, the Dean of the academy, and creator of the Games himself, Dinklage looks both suave, and yet dangerously powerful. A figure of authority, who ought not to be messed with. Much as it was, with Corionalus Snow, Casca is far more devious than the eye can see.
Tom Blythe: A very crucial part of the film, Tom Blythe plays the younger version of the conniving Coriolanus Snow in ‘The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes’, who was the...
- 9/7/2023
- by Agency News Desk
- GlamSham
Nearly a decade after “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2” debuted in theaters and brought the YA action franchise to a close, Lionsgate is heading back into the arena. But this time, there’s no Katniss, no Peeta and none of the high-tech horrors that awaited them.
“The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” is instead taking us back to the early days — the 10th Annual Hunger Games. So, just low-tech horrors.
That means audiences are about to meet a (mostly) new ensemble of characters and an all-new cast of actors playing them. Lionsgate has debuted a batch of “Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” posters introducing all of them, including Tom Blyth as young Coriolanus Snow, “Euphoria” star Hunter Schafer as Tigris and “West Side Story” breakout Rachel Zegler as District 12 contestant Lucy Gray.
“The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” arrives in theaters on Nov. 17. For now, meet the new...
“The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” is instead taking us back to the early days — the 10th Annual Hunger Games. So, just low-tech horrors.
That means audiences are about to meet a (mostly) new ensemble of characters and an all-new cast of actors playing them. Lionsgate has debuted a batch of “Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” posters introducing all of them, including Tom Blyth as young Coriolanus Snow, “Euphoria” star Hunter Schafer as Tigris and “West Side Story” breakout Rachel Zegler as District 12 contestant Lucy Gray.
“The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” arrives in theaters on Nov. 17. For now, meet the new...
- 9/6/2023
- by Haleigh Foutch
- The Wrap
Directed by Michael Giacchino, better known as the composer responsible for exceptional scores like those for "The Batman" and 2009's "Star Trek," "Werewolf by Night" is not your standard Marvel fare. That's clear from the opening credits, which unfold in a moody black and white, and are interspersed with violent claw slashes and crackling lightning bolts reminiscent of James Whale's "Frankenstein."
Marvel has dipped its toe into horror before, namely with the gleeful gore of "Blade" and Sam Raimi's chillingly macabre "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness." Accordingly, "Werewolf by Night" feels like an affectionate love letter to the classic creature features of yore. Its premise is simple: Famed monster hunter Ulysses Bloodstone has shuffled from this mortal coil, leaving his position vacant and his magical artifact up for grabs. A group of fellow monster slayers are invited by Ulysses' widow to compete for his title, which...
Marvel has dipped its toe into horror before, namely with the gleeful gore of "Blade" and Sam Raimi's chillingly macabre "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness." Accordingly, "Werewolf by Night" feels like an affectionate love letter to the classic creature features of yore. Its premise is simple: Famed monster hunter Ulysses Bloodstone has shuffled from this mortal coil, leaving his position vacant and his magical artifact up for grabs. A group of fellow monster slayers are invited by Ulysses' widow to compete for his title, which...
- 10/10/2022
- by David Court
- Slash Film
The success of "The Hunger Games" quadrilogy cannot be overstated. Based on Suzanne Collins' YA novel series, the adaptations painted Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) as the perfect Mockingjay — the face (and heart) of the rebellion. In 2020, Collins released a prequel novel to the series titled "The Ballads of Songbirds and Snakes," which is set 64 years before the events of "The Hunger Games." Now that an adaptation of the novel is in the works, director Francis Lawrence, who helmed the last three films in the quadrilogy, has returned to bring the complex narrative of "The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" to life.
"The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" will be closely following an 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow, who eventually becomes the tyrannical ruler of Panem in "The Hunger Games." In a Vanity Fair exclusive, Lawrence described the adaptation as "a story about love ... set in a different kind of world in a different time.
"The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes" will be closely following an 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow, who eventually becomes the tyrannical ruler of Panem in "The Hunger Games." In a Vanity Fair exclusive, Lawrence described the adaptation as "a story about love ... set in a different kind of world in a different time.
- 8/16/2022
- by Debopriyaa Dutta
- Slash Film
May the odds ever be in our favor as the long-awaited “Hunger Games” prequel film headed for theaters.
Based on Suzanne Collins’ novel “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” the origin story behind the world of viral “The Hunger Games” series is revealed. Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, and Josh Hutcherson shot to fame as the love triangle at the root of the post-apocalyptic life-or-death tournament comprised of teen tributes.
Director Francis Lawrence returns to the franchise to helm “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” introducing a whole new crop of tributes. Screenwriter Michael Lesslie (“Assassin’s Creed”) pens the script. The origin story of Panem President Coriolanus Snow, played by Donald Sutherland in the original movies, is also unveiled, with “The Gilded Age” breakout star Tom Blyth cast as the young Coriolanus. Rachel Zegler is starring in the lead role. The film is slated to premiere in theaters...
Based on Suzanne Collins’ novel “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” the origin story behind the world of viral “The Hunger Games” series is revealed. Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, and Josh Hutcherson shot to fame as the love triangle at the root of the post-apocalyptic life-or-death tournament comprised of teen tributes.
Director Francis Lawrence returns to the franchise to helm “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes,” introducing a whole new crop of tributes. Screenwriter Michael Lesslie (“Assassin’s Creed”) pens the script. The origin story of Panem President Coriolanus Snow, played by Donald Sutherland in the original movies, is also unveiled, with “The Gilded Age” breakout star Tom Blyth cast as the young Coriolanus. Rachel Zegler is starring in the lead role. The film is slated to premiere in theaters...
- 6/24/2022
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Hunter Schafer has volunteered as tribute. The Euphoria actress has officially joined the cast of the highly-anticipated The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. For the prequel film, Hunter is set to play Coriolanus Snow's cousin and confidante, Tigris Snow. Her purpose? Advising the future tyrannical President of Panem "in everything—from his role as mentor to the core of his moral compass" during the 10th annual Hunger Games, according to a press release. As fans of the Og films may remember, Tigris is the ultra fashionable, tiger-like stylist who hides Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence), Gale (Liam Hemsworth), Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and others in her shop...
- 6/22/2022
- E! Online
The following contains spoilers for Suzanne Collins’ The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Read our spoiler-free review here.
At first glance, Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes features only one character from the original trilogy: Coriolanus Snow, 64 years before he will be the villainous President of Panem and Katniss Everdeen’s nemesis. However, while the book takes place several generations before Katniss’ story, it includes the blueprints for all corners of Collins’ post-apocalyptic world: how the Hunger Games evolve and who has a say in shaping them; the first stirrings of unrest in District 12; and even an explanation for how the series’ most iconic song came to be.
Read on for an explanation of what sends Coriolanus Snow on the path to becoming President Snow, complete with mockingjays, serpents, and one plucky District 12 tribute with an unforgettable voice.
What Does “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” Mean?...
At first glance, Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes features only one character from the original trilogy: Coriolanus Snow, 64 years before he will be the villainous President of Panem and Katniss Everdeen’s nemesis. However, while the book takes place several generations before Katniss’ story, it includes the blueprints for all corners of Collins’ post-apocalyptic world: how the Hunger Games evolve and who has a say in shaping them; the first stirrings of unrest in District 12; and even an explanation for how the series’ most iconic song came to be.
Read on for an explanation of what sends Coriolanus Snow on the path to becoming President Snow, complete with mockingjays, serpents, and one plucky District 12 tribute with an unforgettable voice.
What Does “The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” Mean?...
- 5/21/2020
- by Kayti Burt
- Den of Geek
Among the many genre-busting worldbuilding details of Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games series, the character of President Coriolanus Snow has proven to be a rather unforgettable villain. In the whole of dystopian Ya, few baddies contain as many disturbingly specific details as the elderly yet vicious President of Panem: His obsession with roses, less for the symbolism of their petals’ blood-red color than for their grisly perfume, which mask the scent of blood on his breath. The blood comes from ulcers in his mouth, caused by a lifetime of drinking poison—at first unwittingly, and then intentionally, challenging would-be assassins by ingesting it and living anyway. There’s also the plastic surgery that gives him his oddly full lips, a creepy attempt at imitating youth when he so clearly reeks of death.
But that’s The Hunger Games’ Snow. The 18-year-old Coriolanus whose perspective drives The Ballad of Songbirds and...
But that’s The Hunger Games’ Snow. The 18-year-old Coriolanus whose perspective drives The Ballad of Songbirds and...
- 5/20/2020
- by Kayti Burt
- Den of Geek
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