Director Francis Lawrence says that early on in the process of bringing The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes to life he spoke with author Suzanne Collins about the music. Collins told him music’s an important element to this prequel and that the songs were inspired by Scottish, English, and Irish ballads. Lionsgate’s new behind the scenes featurette focuses on the music and features never-before-released clips from the film, including scenes of Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler) performing on stage.
The new video also includes interviews with Lawrence, producer Nina Jacobson, and executive music producer Dave Cobb who worked closely with author Collins to capture her vision.
In addition to Rachel Zegler, the cast includes Tom Blyth as Coriolanus Snow, Oscar winner Viola Davis as Head Gamemaker Volumnia Gaul, Peter Dinklage as Dean Cesca Highbottom, Jason Schwartzman as Lucky Flickerman, Josh Andrés Rivera as Sejanus Plinth, and Hunter Schafer as Tigris Snow. Jerome Lance is Marcus, tribute from District 2; Ashley Liao is Clemensia Dovecote, one of Coriolanus’s closest friends and mentor to a tribute from District 11; Knox Gibson plays Bobbin, tribute from District 8; Mackenzie Lansing is Coral, tribute from District 4; and Aamer Husain plays Felix Ravinstill, mentor to a tribute from District 11.
Fionnula Flanagan plays Grandma’am, Coriolanus’s strict grandmother; Isobel Jesper Jones plays Mayfair Lipp, daughter of the mayor of District 12; Flora Li Thiemann is Livia Cardew, mentor to a tribute from District 1; and Burn Gorman is Commander Hoff, Scott Folan is Beanpole, and Carl Spencer is Smiley, Peacekeepers sent by the Capitol to District 12.
Honor Gillies, Eike Onyambu, and Konstantin Taffet play members of the Covey, a group of nomads in District 12. Michael Greco and Daniela Grubert are Strabo Plinth and Mrs. Plinth, wealthy parents to Sejanus Plinth.
Both the film and The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (Music From & Inspired By) soundtrack will be released on November 17, 2023.
“The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus (Blyth) who is the last hope for his failing lineage, the once-proud Snow family that has fallen from grace in a post-war Capitol. With his livelihood threatened, Snow is reluctantly assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Zegler), a tribute from the impoverished District 12. But after Lucy Gray’s charm captivates the audience of Panem, Snow sees an opportunity to shift their fates,” reads Lionsgate’s official synopsis. “With everything he has worked for hanging in the balance, Snow unites with Lucy Gray to turn the odds in their favor. Battling his instincts for both good and evil, Snow sets out on a race against time to survive and reveal if he will ultimately become a songbird or a snake.”
