Jason Schwartzman to play Caesar Flickerman's ancestor in 'Hunger Games' prequel

Actor Jason Schwartzman becomes the latest name to join the cast of The Hunger Games prequel film The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes set to come out in November 2023.

Schwartzman will play Lucretius “Lucky” Flickerman, the host of the 10th annual Hunger Games and ancestor of future host Caesar Flickerman, who is played by Stanley Tucci in The Hunger Games movies.

Initially cast in the lead roles were Tom Blyth as a young Coriolanus Snow (Donald Sutherland portrayed the elder presidential version in the films) and West Side Story breakout star Rachel Zegler as the District 12 tribute he will mentor, Lucy Gray Baird.

Euphoria actress Hunter Schafer was also recently cast as Tigris Snow, Coriolanus' cousin and companion, and joins other actors that include Josh Andres Rivera, Jerome Lance, Ashley Liao, Knox Gibson, Mackenzie Lansing, Aamer Husain, Nick Benson, Laurel Marsden, Lilly Cooper, Luna Steeples, and Hiroki Berrecloth.

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes takes place years before Jennifer Lawrence's Katniss Everdeen became known as the "Mockingjay" when an 18-year-old Coriolanus Snow becomes the unlikely mentor to Baird for the deadly annual games.