The 10 biggest changes the 'Hunger Games' prequel movie makes from the book

Kirsten AcunaJan 14, 2024, 15:47 IST

Coriolanus Snow really wants to run away with Lucy Gray in the movie.Murray Close/Lionsgate

Warning: There are spoilers ahead for "The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes."
The prequel makes both big and small tweaks from author Suzanne Collins' book of the same name.

"The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes" is an adaptation of Suzanne Collins' best-selling prequel book of the same name.

Starring Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler, the movie shows Coriolanus Snow's (Blyth) rise to power in Panem decades before the first installment in the franchise.

To adapt the over-500-page book, the movie contains many changes from its source material. Some were made for time while other adjustments accommodated for characters nixed from the live adaptation.

Here are the most noticeable changes the prequel makes from the book.

The Plinth Prize isn't introduced until way later in the book.

The Plinth Prize is named for Sejanus Plinth's family.Courtesy of Lionsgate

Arachne dies in a different way in the movie.

Arachne can be spotted among the Academy mentors in the above photo.Lionsgate

Clemensia doesn't transform into a snake-like creature in the movie.

Viola Davis' Dr. Gaul shows Clemensia a tank of engineered snakes.Lionsgate

Snow doesn't enter the arena before the Hunger Games begin in the book.

Coriolanus Snow enters the Hunger Games arena for the second time in the movie.Lionsgate

In the book, Lucy Gray and Snow kiss earlier.

Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler as Coriolanus Snow and Lucy Gray Baird.Murray Close/Lionsgate

Reaper, Wovey, Mizzen, and Treech die in different ways in the book.

Treech and Reaper stand among the Hunger Games tributes that are transported to a holding cell before the games.Lionsgate

In the book, Snow doesn't realize his father's initials are on the handkerchief he stuffed into the snake tank to save Lucy Gray.

Coriolanus Snow watches the snake tank taken away by helicopter.Lionsgate

Snow changed his mind about running away with Lucy Gray in the book.

Coriolanus Snow really wants to run away with Lucy Gray in the movie.Murray Close/Lionsgate

Lucy Gray receives two extra lines of dialogue near the end of the movie, subtly altering the meaning of her final conversation with Snow.

Rachel Zegler as Lucy Gray Baird in "The Hunger Games" prequel.Lionsgate

Snow is shown shooting at Lucy Gray in the movie.

Snow hunts after Lucy Gray at the end of the book and movie.Lionsgate

12 details you might have missed in 'The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes'

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