Peter Dinklage will go head-to-head with young Snow in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

Peter Dinklage is about to shake up Panem.

The Game of Thrones star has joined the cast of the Hunger Games prequel The Ballad of Songbird and Snakes as Casca Highbottom, the dean of the Academy and unintentional creator of the Hunger Games. Dinklage will star opposite leads Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler in the film centered on a young Coriolanus Snow (played by Donald Sutherland in the original movies) before he becomes the authoritarian president of Panem.

In Suzanne Collins' prequel novel, Casca unintentionally conceives of the Hunger Games during his university days with Coriolanus' father, Crassus Snow. For a final project, the two are tasked with devising a punishment for districts as a means to solidify their fear of the Capitol. Casca lays the foundation of the games in a drunken state, discovering the next day that Crassus has turned in the project to receive a good grade.

Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images Peter Dinklage

As a public face of the event, Casca begins a downward spiral due to the horrific nature of the games. The character maintains a dislike of the younger Snow (Blyth), given his grudge against his father.

"Dean Highbottom is one of the most powerful people in Snow's life," director Francis Lawrence said in a statement announcing Dinklage's casting. "As the austere and vindictive face of the games, he sets the rules that will determine every aspect of Coriolanus's fate. I'm thrilled that Peter will be bringing him to life."

The sprawling Songbirds cast includes Rachel Zegler, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, and Jason Schwartzman. Jerome Lance, Ashley Liao, Knox Gibson, Mackenzie Lansing, Aamer Husain, Irene Boehm, Cooper Dillon, Dakota Shapiro, George Somner, and Vaughan Reilly will portray a new crop of mentors and tributes. Lawrence, who helmed Catching Fire and both Mockingjay films, will produce alongside franchise vet Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson. Collins, Tim Palen, and Jim Miller will executive-produce.

Dinklage's recent screen credits include I Care a Lot, Cyrano, and American Dreamer. His other upcoming projects include She Came to Me, Brothers, Hitpig, and The Thicket.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is slated to hit theaters Nov. 17, 2023.

Related content:

• Everything we know so far about the Hunger Games prequel film The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

• Watch the first teaser for the Hunger Games prequel centered on a young Coriolanus Snow

• The Hunger Games prequel has found its young President Snow