The world of Panem is continuing to grow as Haymitch’s Hunger Games prequel movie was just announced. Suzanne Collins’ upcoming book Sunrise on the Reaping takes place during the second Quarter Quell where Katniss and Peeta’s future mentor Haymitch won 24 years before meeting them. As President Snow still ran Panem at the time, fans have already made up their minds about who they’d like to play the middle-aged ruler, and “it’s really the only logical choice.”
In The Hunger Games prequel The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, Tom Blyth played young President Snow back when he was a mentor for The Hunger Games. In the OG Hunger Games trilogy, Donald Sutherland brilliantly portrayed the older President Snow. Now, fans would like his son, Kiefer Sutherland, to take on a middle-aged Coriolanus for the next prequel film, as @IMDBorg pointed out. And this tweet below explains a lot of our feelings about this prospect:
It's really the only logical choice.
It truly is a “logical” choice. Donald and Kiefer Sutherland have such a strong resemblance to each other that I find it hard to picture anyone else playing a middle-aged version of the character Donald brought to the big screen.
Not to mention, the two are already examples of celebrities who’ve worked with their children. The 24 actor made his film debut in his father’s dramedy Max Dugan Returns followed later by A Time to Kill and Forsaken. While the two Sutherlands wouldn’t be able to be in the next Hunger Games movie together, it would still be a unique experience to see Kiefer Sutherland take on his father’s iconic role.
TikTok user @imperator.marikosa also pointed out that we've seen a father-son duo play the older and younger versions of the same character recently and with success. In the first season of Monarch: A Legacy of Monsters, which you can watch with an AppleTV+ subscription, Kurt Russell and his son, Wyatt, both played Lee Shaw. Based on the successful casting of the Russells, the creator used the show to explain why Kiefer Sutherland should take on a middle-aged President Snow:
I am Team Kiefer for middle-aged Snow. I did this for Monarch’s Legacy of Monsters with Wyatt and Kurt Russell playing the same character but, like, 50 years apart. And I think it worked really well. It was fun to watch.
I agree that it’s absolutely fun to watch parents and children playing younger or older versions of the same character. We’ve seen that before in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang between Robert Downey Jr. and his son Indio, The Wife with Glenn Close and her daughter Annie Starke, and Resident Evil: The Final Chapter’s Mila Jovovich and her daughter Ever Anderson. This type of pairing works very well for realistic character development and is a fun fact fans always love to engage with.
After the Twitter user mentioned above suggested Kiefer Sutherland take on the role of a younger President Snow for the Haymitch prequel, you can imagine how many fans were in agreement in the comments. Here's a sampling:
- Sometimes the obvious answer is also the right one.- @Get Me Another…
- Of course!! Who else would you choose?? He also plays an excellent bad guy.- @Sko Hayes
- Holy moly…why didn’t I think of that?!😳😳😳 - @Cory Sims
- If Monarch Legacy of Monster's can do it, both Kurt & Wyatt knocked it out of the park. Hunger Games can pull this off brilliantly as well.- @Mcusr
- Oh shit- @D ☔️
- Every time I am reminded that Donald Sutherland and Kiefer Sutherland are father and son, my brain processes it like it's new information- @not followed by anyone you’re following
- Duh right? Keifer is right there- @Rotienne
The ayes have it that Kiefer Sutherland is a fan-favorite choice to play a middle-aged version of President Snow for Haymitch’s prequel film. I can’t think of anyone better to portray the Panem president’s sinister personality at this age, and I hope this fan-casting becomes reality.
As Suzanne Collins’ prequel novel Sunrise on the Reaping comes out on March 18, 2025, you can expect to see its film adaptation hit theaters on November 20, 2026. While we wait for more updates about this thrilling project, make sure to check out the 2024 movie schedule so you don't miss either of the Sutherlands' next projects.
