Lionsgate Wants to Film 'Hunger Games' Prequels
Molly Tue, December 8, 2015 ;)
Jennifer Lawrence and Lionsgate's Michael Burns
Lionsgate Vice Chairman Michael Burns spoke at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York this morning and compared The Hunger Games franchise to Harry Potter saying it will "live on and on and on."
Mockingjay Part 2 continues to lead the box office with roughly $525 million earned worldwide. The film opened just over $100 million its opening weekend, behind earlier franchise installments. Burns said he was disappointed, but that it was a "high-class problem" to have.
Not sure what "kids" Burns talked to but he said, "The one thing that kids say they missed (from the early Hunger Games films) was there was no arenas. If we went backwards there obviously would be arenas." We disagree and have a whole lot to say about this argument, but that's for another post!
Burns also said the studio aims to get more from its other big franchises — including Twilight, The Expendables and Saw, looking towards reboots, prequels or sequels for each of them.
Burns told Variety, “Whatever extensions of ‘The Hunger Games’ brand we pursue, the intent is not to glorify violence by arbitrarily telling arena stories, but to continue Suzanne Collins’s exploration of the concepts of just war theory.”
What do you think, tributes? Do you want to see Hunger Games prequels? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Reader Comments (13)
I for one don't really know how to feel about this. I'm a little upset because if Suzanne wanted to make a prequel she would have written one. Lionsgate is taking her story and exploring with it by themselves. If Suzanne isn't involved in pretty sure I won't be watching it. I have always been curious about what occurred prior to the story but if Suzanne has no jurisdiction is it really even a Hunger Games movie?
I agree with the comment above me, I don't think it's a good idea. I know there's a lot of story left to tell, take for example the Dark Days, but the book doesn't go into further detail about them. I also agree that if Suzanne wanted a prequel she WOULD have written one! She actually wrote a letter saying how great of a journey The Hunger Games was, but that it had come to its end. The Hunger Games is a great story, but as a tribute who has read the books many times I can tell you that if they make some sort of tv series or movie that's not based on the book, it's just going to ruin it. It's not just the Games and the government that make the story amazing, the characters play a HUGE role in the series. Take Katniss away and what do you have? Take Peeta, Haymitch, Effie, Prim, EVERYONE away and what's left? Not much. We're all attached to those characters and making a new story with new characters may not be the smartest move. I say let's leave the series as it is, let's not add more to it! The way it ended is perfect and satisfying.
I thank it's a great idea. I always wondered what the previous games were. They don't have to do them all just enough so we know, I say go ahead!
I'm not so sure about this idea right now..I don't think I would like to see Hunger Games movies without the characters we already know and love. To me it's like Francis Lawrence once said The Hunger Games is Katniss and her story..I mean I would love to see/read more stories about the characters we already know but I also believe that they all deserve their peace so I wouldn't want to make them go threw terrible thing again to get knew books/movies... Still I keep an open mind..maybe they end up being great projects and we fall in love with new characters..
I think that doing prequels or sequels would be a fantastic idea as long as the same characters are in them && susan Collins helps write the movies, as she did in the last ones. She auctually sat down with them and helped write the screenplay out of the book so whatever went in the film was her idea as well, maybe she will write more being an author you never know what comes to your mind. I really would love to see more though and I hope that Jennifer lawernece would love to do more also! Such great movies, I'd like to see what happened when her dad died and her mom shutting down and her raising prim and the bread screen of her and peeta and her turning in squirrels to the baker for bread there is so much more that could be done... And as this is all going on you could show haymitch hunger games or finnics... Really the possibility a are endless or even he war and how the tradition of the hunger games starting. Think about the possibilities if there are the same characters
I think this idea would be really good, they could show Finnick winning the games aged 14 and how he does it, they could also focus on other victors like Joanna mason and beetee and the morphlings that would be good too.
I was never really a fan of pushing this world further than Collins intended only because it turned out to be popular, but there was one idea I saw somewhere that kinda bought me and it was making a movie about Haymitch and the second Quarter Quell. The reason? We actually have source material for that since it was described in the books but they cut this part out of the Catching Fire movie, now could be the time to take advantage of it.
What I really actually love about this idea, though, is that if such a movie does happen, the female protagonist would most likely be Maysilee Donner, which could at least partly compensate for leaving Madge out of the movies, and since she's been Katniss' mother's friend - give an opportunity to include the previous generation characters.
My thoughts are mixed & complicated...
I'd awoken to the "prequels" headline and had the immediate reaction of excitement--with a hint of reservation. What are the details so far? Should I be afraid? I mean, a) I saw this coming from a mile away. Inevitable that they cannot let go of this; who knows how much more milk that cash cow's got to give? I just thought it'd be officially broached in a few months or so, at least--not three weeks after Part 2's release. b) I definitely want more from "The World of The Hunger Games." I want it to, like Harry Potter, have life beyond the original series. There are plenty of things to be done. I just want it done right. Suzanne has to be involved, feeding and/or confirming the information even if doesn't feel she can write more full novels. Key individuals such as Francis & Nina (maybe even Gary?) should ideally be involved. Lionsgate needs to hold onto the integrity they've maintained through four films and not sell out this world and these characters. Dollar signs in the eyes, I get it--but no turning into pure greedy money-grubbers & forgetting what this title is about. It's special.
The question is, how best to further explore Panem and expand/continue the story? What format is best? Who/what do you focus on? Well, there's the history/development of the nation: events leading to the fall of the U.S. and eventual rise of Panem...the Dark Days, the establishment of the Games, the rises of the two presidents, rebellion plotting. Then there are Games which would be particularly notable for some reason (especially due to Victors such as Haymitch, Finnick, or Johanna.) Is there a full, coherent, worthwhile story to be outlined in all of that? Could it be dealt with via a series of films, or episodic segments (but only if you keep to cinematic production values and quality?) What about a documentary style, covering everything you'd want to learn in an objective fashion? They could do that through a propaganda lens, I suppose, but that'd be less useful in getting the facts.
You -could- perhaps try simply looking at things from a patchwork of other perspectives and gaining more backstory. But then, maybe that'd be better revealed by looking into the future--reconstruction, the "next generation," whatever will happen that's of interest...obviously most of us huge fans would devour simple slice-of-life stories about our beloved characters, but is that enough to engage the more casual viewer in major productions? [I personally like the idea of short films/stories, or graphic novels, or something a bit less conventional--but of course standard filmmaking is where the big money's at...]
I still don't know that what they're thinking right now is the best way to begin expanding. Just pick and choose Games sessions they think would make attractive films? And do we want to try introducing new casts of characters when everyone's so attached to Katniss & Company? Isn't it better to do something involving them? Star Trek managed to bring us five different, fully developed and compelling crews, with a sixth now on the horizon...but frankly, I don't know how interested even I'D be in HG stories totally disconnected from any of the known characters. And I most definitely don't want to see anything that doesn't feel right to me and isn't in the spirit of what we now have.
I read something on Forbes that was very interesting heres the link
http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2015/12/09/hunger-games-prequels-could-be-disastrous-contradiction-of-franchises-core-values/
Basically saying that the message and the values that the story is about would be tarnished if they make another movie about kids killing kids for money. It would be the opposite of what the story was trying to say. I agree and yet I would love to see a movie about Haymitch and the second quarter quill. He was at a time when people from the first war with the districts were still alive so he might have known more of what it was like before the war a little bit more about the history of this country and how it wasn't always like this. His story could put a perspective on the whole franchise of how it all came down. But I would not want to see it with out Suzanne Collins involvement.
I am skeptical that such a film will ever be made.
Copyright Law 101 -- such a film _cannot_ be made without Collins's permission. I doubt that such permission has already been given; and it's a safe bet that Collins would not give such permission without being very involved in the making of the film. For the foreseeable future, she won't write another HG book (she's already told us), so where would the story for this prequel/sequel come from? From a screenwriter who is not SC, and who is under pressure to "jazz things up." I doubt that Suzanne Collins would sign off on that.
I don't know...I've heard that Lionsgate would have the legal ability to create a "Hunger Games" film without Suzanne having a hand in it at all, but I very much hope that no one there would actually consider doing so. She may not be thinking about publishing more books soon, but that's hardly only way to provide story information. (George R.R. Martin told the Game of Thrones writers the rest of what happens in A Song of Ice & Fire, just in case he never gets around to finishing the last two of his books.) I'm sure 100% of fans agree with Francis, Nina, & the cast that SC needs to be involved to guide the process once again, and that Lionsgate going off on their own without at least earning approval at each phase could be very problematic. Let's hope it all works out well and doesn't come to that.
Shelly, look at the copyright page of the first HG book. Right at the top it says, "(c) 2008 Suzanne Collins." What that means is Lionsgate >>>cannot<<< make an HG movie without Suzanne Collin's permission, any more than they can steal a car out of her driveway because it would look good in a Lionsgate film. So why is this Lionsgate guy saying this? 1) Suzanne Collins signed a contract like what Ian Fleming signed with his James Bond novels, basically granting perpetual movie rights. 2) This guy is misinformed about what the contract says that SC signed. 3) He is presuming that he can talk her into agreeing into another HG movie when she didn't write the book beforehand, maybe by he waving a lot of money in her face.
As much as SC tried to convey a message with her trilogy, I really doubt that she would grant perpetual movie rights. (Have you SEEN some of the James Bond movies made in the Seventies? I can't picture any modern author signing a contract like what Ian Fleming signed.) Nor do I think that SC would authorize a fifth HG film that she did not write, for _any_ amount of money. Bottom line: it's 99 percent likely that this Lionsgate guy just publicly made a fool of himself.
I'm aware. However, in discussing this with someone else, I'd been surprised to hear that (according to this seemingly very knowledgeable person's understanding, anyway) the case was such that LG *could* now produce HG movies independently. I'm not certain that he's correct, but he was confident of it, and at any rate it doesn't alter the fact that they shouldn't try to go it alone even if they in fact can. I could hardly imagine SC just handing it all over and saying to them or anyone else, "Here, I'm done; now just do whatever you want in the future." x-0 (No James Bond repeat--learn from those who've gone before!) I certainly hope that her full approval, at least, is required...