‘The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping’ Trailer Gives Michael Jackson a Run for His Money in Record-Breaking Debut

After a disappointing last couple of years, Lionsgate probably can’t wait for November 2026 to get here already. That’s when the studio will debut the second of its two major offerings for next year, The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping. The latest installment of the blockbuster dystopian franchise is a prequel to the original set of films, which launched Jennifer Lawrence to stardom. The new movie will tell the origin story of Haymitch Abernathy, who was played in the original series by Woody Harrelson as a has-been drunk who rises to the occasion when called to action. Sunrise on the Reaping debuted its first teaser earlier this week, not too long after Lionsgate unveiled the first teaser of its other 2026 tent pole, Michael, the controversial biopic of the late Michael Jackson. Encouragingly, both promotional assets have set viewership records for the struggling studio. The Sunrise on the Reaping teaser trailer generated 109 million views across platforms in the first 24 hours of release, the second-biggest in Lionsgate’s history. This comes on the heels of the Michael teaser trailer breaking records for the studio, and the musical biopic genre; the Michael teaser has now generated over 300 million views across platforms already. Directed by Antoine Fuqua, Michael is set for release in April, while Sunrise on the Reaping will debut in November. The unveiling of the film’s first teaser also resulted in a spike in interest for some of the franchise’s earlier hits. For instance, the very first installment jumped to the number two spot on the domestic iTunes charts on Friday, while The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes found a spot for itself in the top 20. The Hunger Games Franchise Has Grossed Over $3. 3 Billion Worldwide.
https://collider.com/the-hunger-games-sunrise-on-the-reaping-trailer-most-viewed-in-franchise/