Peter Dinklage To Star in 'Hunger Games' Prequel 'The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes'

Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage will star as Casca Highbottom in the upcoming Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, according to Deadline.

Dinklage will appear across Rachel Zegler and Tom Blyth, both of whom were recently confirmed for the respective roles of Lucy Gray Baird and young Coriolanus Snow in the movie adaptation of Suzanne Collins’ novel. Hunter Schafer will also appear in the film as Tigris Snow, the cousin of Coriolanus Snow.

“With production underway, we couldn’t be more excited about the way this cast has come together and thrilled to be welcoming Peter Dinklage to Panem,” Nathan Kahane, president of Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group, said in a statement. “Peter is not just a fan favorite actor who brings a commanding presence to every part he plays. He is one of the best actors alive. He will bring a formidable, charismatic authority to the important role of the dean of the Academy.”

The movie will center on an 18-year-old Snow, many years prior to his tyrannical stint as President of Panem, according to an official logline. “With the 10th annual Hunger Games fast approaching, the young Snow is alarmed when he is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird, the girl tribute from impoverished District 12,” the description reads. “But, after Lucy Gray commands all of Panem’s attention by defiantly singing during the reaping ceremony, Snow thinks he might be able to turn the odds in their favor.”

Francis Lawrence, who directed three of the four Hunger Games titles — Catching Fire, Mockingjay Part One and Mockingjay Part Two — will return for the prequel, alongside producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson.

Dinklage's Casca Highbottom, who is the dean of the Academy in the film, "is one of the most powerful people in Snow’s life,” according to Lawrence. “As the austere and vindictive face of the games, he sets the rules that will determine every aspect of Coriolanus’s fate," the director added. "I’m thrilled that Peter will be bringing him to life."

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is scheduled to premiere in theaters on November 17, 2023.

In more entertainment news, Andrew Garfield will star as Richard Branson in Hot Air.