The Hunger Games is set to have its first-ever stage play adaptation. Released in 2008, the first Hunger Games book written by Suzanne Collins launched an enduring franchise that currently includes four bestselling novels and five movies that have grossed more than $3.4 billion at the worldwide box office. The number of books will soon increase with the March release of Sunrise on the Reaping, a novel focused on Haymitch Abernathy during the 50th Hunger Games. Sunrise on the Reaping is also being adapted into a movie scheduled for a November 2026 theatrical debut.
Lionsgate has now shared that the franchise is expanding with a live stage adaptation of the first Hunger Games novel and movie. The Hunger Games: On Stage's first performances will begin at London's Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre on October 20, 2025, with tickets going on sale as of March 27. The award-winning Conor McPherson is adapting the story for the stage while the renowned director Matthew Dunster is directing. Check out the statements from Collins, McPherson, and Dunster below, as well as a behind-the-scenes video of the production:
Suzanne Collins: I’m thrilled that The Hunger Games is in the hands of gifted playwright Conor McPherson and accomplished director Matthew Dunster. Connor has done a fantastic adaptation, which is quite unique from the screenplay. And Matthew’s immersive, dynamic staging gives the audience a brand-new way to experience the story.
Conor McPherson: As a dad to a teenager myself, it’s especially gratifying working on a story whose values of resilience and moral courage speak to young people in these uncertain times. Our singular focus is to honour Suzanne Collins’ achievement with a faithful adaptation that’s as thrilling on stage as it is on the page. It’s been a great pleasure to watch the theatrical language of this show evolving through explosive workshops under Matthew Dunster’s inspired partnership with choreographer Charlotte Broom and their tireless team of young performers.
Matthew Dunster: Conor McPherson lifts the detail and power from the book and film and has provided us with the kind of taut and dangerous play he is renowned for. He honours the young voice of Katniss Everdeen and puts her front and centre. We've been workshopping the play for over a year with our world class creative team; carefully honing our theatrical vocabulary because we want to bring audiences something as impactful and edgy as Suzanne Collins’ novel and as passionate and exciting as the movie. But we are going to do it in our own way – in the theatre. We want our Hunger Games to be uniquely, thrillingly theatrical.
What This Means For The Hunger Games
The Franchise Moves Into A New Artistic Medium
After dominating young adult literature and blockbuster movies, The Hunger Games' influence is now spreading into the world of live theater. As seen with the ongoing performances of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Stranger Things: The First Shadow, The Hunger Games is not the first popular franchise to translate its stories to the stage in recent years. One noticeable difference is that The Hunger Games: On Stage is an adaptation of Collins' first novel set in Panem instead of being an original story like Cursed Child or The First Shadow.
While the franchise is expanding, The Hunger Games books continue to be the franchise's initial medium. Every new story, including The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and Sunrise on the Reaping, is presented as a novel before being adapted into another form. The franchise's literary roots are as strong as ever and will be the foundation of the stage adaptation, which will bring iconic scenes from the first novel to life in gripping fashion.
Our Take On The Hunger Games: On Stage
It Is An Exciting Next Step For The Franchise
As a well-written and character-driven narrative, The Hunger Games is a story that can translate well to the stage. The prospect of seeing it live is enticing, although The Hunger Games' most tragic deaths will probably be even more devastating to experience in-person. As an adaptation of an already existing story, it does not have to come with unnecessary complications and questions about the canon that have surrounded Cursed Child. Adapting the first novel and movie feels like the ideal way to bring The Hunger Games to live theater.
Priority access for The Hunger Games: On Stage tickets can be accessed here.
Source: Lionsgate
