A Weird Haymitch Casting Rumor for the ‘Hunger Games’ Prequel Has Taken Hold Online

Another Hunger Games prequel movie is on the way, which will center on the Hunger Games that 16-year-old Haymitch won. Recently, a rumor began swirling on Twitter (technically X) that young Haymitch’s actor has been found, but the rumored actor doesn’t seem to fit the character’s description very well.

Recently, Suzanne Collins announced she was expanding The Hunger Games book series with another prequel novel, Sunrise on the Reaping. Although the novel won’t be released until 2025, Lionsgate has already ordered a film adaptation to release in 2026. The early start on the adaptation isn’t surprising, considering how successful The Hunger Games film series has been. Both the book and movie will focus on the 50th Hunger Games, in which Haymitch participated. In the original series, Haymitch Abernathy is the only living District 12 Hunger Games victor. As a result, he is stuck mentoring all District 12 tributes, which is how he meets Katniss and Peetah.

At first, Haymitch comes across as a crude alcoholic who doesn’t care about anyone. However, readers soon learn that he was subjected to immense trauma during and after his stint in the Games. Although he struggles with his past, he ultimately becomes one of the biggest figures in the Districts’ rebellion. Considering he’s a fan favorite and one of the most essential victors, fans can’t wait for him to appear in the prequel movie and are already speculating who will play him.

Twitter users think they know who will play young Haymitch

Rumor has it that Mike Faist has been cast as Haymitch in the Sunrise on the Reaping movie. Faist recently earned widespread recognition after his role alongside Zendaya in Challengers, where he played a professional tennis player. Now, Twitter users are convinced that his next big role will bring him into The Hunger Games universe. The rumor started when Twitter user @21metgala claimed Production Weekly had confirmed Faist as Haymitch. Soon, users shared a screenshot of the PW issue, which started the rumor.

The document lists Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson as producers and Francis Lawrence as director. The parentheses underneath the film synopsis state, “Mike Faist mentioned for the male lead.” So, Faist was only “mentioned” as a “male lead.” On top of that, while many speculate that Haymitch is the lead in Sunrise on the Reaping, this actually hasn’t been officially confirmed. All we know is that the book and movie take place during his Hunger Games. He’ll most certainly appear in the book and film, but it’s unclear if it will be told from his perspective.

Still, the rumor quickly spread throughout Twitter, with some expressing excitement about the alleged casting. However, there’s one big problem if the casting were accurate: Faist is 32 years old, and Haymitch is only 16 during the 50th Hunger Games. While it’s well-known that actors sometimes portray characters younger than them, this is a big stretch. It would be like casting Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen today instead of over ten years ago. Meanwhile, even though Lawrence killed the role of Katniss despite being a few years older than her, many often wondered how much more emotionally striking the films would’ve been if they had cast age-appropriate actors and truly emphasized how the Capitol was killing literal children.

Fortunately, many Twitter users addressed the elephant in the room: A 32-year-old man cannot pass for a 16-year-old boy. At that point, the movie might as well just have Woody Harrelson reprise the role of Haymitch. However, others are still convinced that Faist would shine as Haymitch.

Ultimately, there’s a chance Faist’s name has come up in discussions for a role in Sunrise on the Reaping, but there’s no confirmation of what that role is. Hopefully, it’s not actually Haymitch, as, while he’s a great actor and can play younger characters, he can’t play that young. Additionally, it’s not a bad idea for Hollywood to start casting age-appropriate actors instead of twisting viewers’ perception of aging with significant age gaps between characters and their actors.