The Hunger Games, the story of a dystopian world that debuted in the early 2010s, has reappeared in the pop culture sphere. Brandon Kondritz investigates the resurgence’s roots and what new and old fans have to say about it.
Warning: this episode may contain spoilers about the series.
(music: “Caesar Flickerman’s Theme”)
Has this catchy, trumpet-filled melody been on your TikTok for-you-page recently? To some, it’s only the most recent trending sound. But for others, it’s a trip down memory lane: it’s one of the tracks on the soundtrack for The Hunger Games, the story of a dystopian world that’s been experiencing a recent resurgence.
(natural sound: Caesar Flickerman saying “welcome to the 74th annual Hunger Games”)
The Hunger Games is a trilogy of novels that were later adapted into four action-packed movies. It all began in 2008 when the first book hit shelves nationwide. And in 2015, the final movie, Mockingjay Part II, was released in theaters. In that 7-year period, the story of Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, and the oppression of Panem’s 12 districts dominated pop culture.
ALLAN: I grew up on The Hunger Games. I was obsessed with The Hunger Games when I was a kid. So I still think about it from time to time. I think I’d be in District Four.
That’s Medill first-year Juliet Allan. Although she was an avid Hunger Games fan in her youth, she was surprised to see it resurfacing on social media last month.
ALLAN: Initially, I feel like a lot of people starting seeing a lot of TikToks about The Hunger Games. So, I was watching them, and I was slowly and slowly getting more of them, and then I found out that The Hunger Games was on Netflix for a limited time.
Only for the month of March, all four movies were available for fans to enjoy. But signs show that it goes beyond pure nostalgia.
ALLAN: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, which I believe was a prequel about President Snow, is coming out as a movie soon. Whatever movie studio made The Hunger Games probably worked something out with Netflix—stressed that they were only there for a month—and gave people a very limited time to watch it. And then Netflix cut us all off, and now everyone wants more Hunger Games, which will sell tickets to The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
(natural sound: Katniss Everdeen saying “I volunteer, I volunteer, I volunteer as tribute”)
Author Suzanne Collins released The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as a novel in 2020, and the movie adaptation will be released later this year. Even if it was a marketing tactic by the film’s producers, it has revived the pop culture world’s love for the series. School of Communication first-year Maeren Quirke has enjoyed the opportunity to reminisce.
QUIRKE: I think a lot of things from our teen, young adult era are coming back, because we’re in college, we’re a little homesick. Maybe we just want to relive our youth.
She’s seen the references about reapings, star-crossed lovers, jabberjays, and more on her TikTok for-you-page. Quirke says longtime obsessions are being revived, especially a clip from movie two of Sam Claflin, who plays Finnick Odair, drinking from a spile.
(natural sound: clip of Sam Claflin drinking from spile)
QUIRKE: Finnick and the spile–I have seen that on TikTok. I think the thirst for Sam Claflin is coming back. (laughs)
For School of Communication first-year Ellen Darmstadter, the revival has been a good reminder of the role the books played in her childhood.
DARMSTADTER: I love those movies. I just think they’re great. I’m not a big action movie person, but I just thought they were a really good adaptation of the books. I read the books first and I really liked them, so I was just excited seeing them coming back, seeing people excited about them.
And when asked if Darmstadter has any favorites in the series, she was quick to answer.
DARMSTADTER: I think Catching Fire is the best. I just think that the costumes are great. Effie—I love her outfits. They’re fantastic. It also has a really great, pivotal moment where there’s a lot of uncertainty about Katniss and Peeta. Does anyone actually believe their love act? But then they’re also finding out if they really like each other. I think it’s portrayed really well.
(natural sound: announcer saying “Let the 75th Hunger Games begin. May the odds be ever in your favor” over PA system)
The movies are gaining traction among new fans too. Weinberg first-year Margaret Sprigg-Dudley knew a little about the series but is enjoying digging into the plot.
SPRIGG-DUDLEY: I have watched two of the movies so far. I’m loving them. Good story, I like the characters. I thought I knew the overarching plot of the whole set, but apparently I only knew the plot of one of the movies, so I’m excited to see what will happen.
With all of the Hunger Games content flooding TikTok, Sprigg-Dudley has found herself steering clear of social media to avoid spoilers.
SPRIGG-DUDLEY: Sometimes a video will come up about ‘The Hunger Games’ and I’ll scroll away or something. I have been making a little bit of an effort because I’m in the middle of watching it.
And for some, like Weinberg first-year Ainsley Lauer, the resurgence has been a good excuse to explore something completely new.
LAUER: I’m kind of excited because I never got into The Hunger Games the first time around. So now that it’s coming back, I can actually appreciate it.
Not all of the content flooding social media about The Hunger Games has been nostalgic, though—some creators have been intensely analyzing characters and key scenes. Allan has seen these videos firsthand.
ALLAN: There’s this one girl who posts theories and, like, her thoughts on The Hunger Games books and movies—her videos are pretty interesting.
Allan is referring to Loretta Loera, @luckyleftie on TikTok. She’s made dozens of videos diving into everything from the evolution of Effie Trinket’s outfits to Caesar Flickerman’s political role in the games themselves.
(natural sound: clip of a video from @LuckyLeftie on TikTok, analyzing Caesar Flickerman)
Despite the deeply analytical content circulating about the series, Lauer believes the return is simply a way of bringing back a beloved series of movies.
LAUER: I think this time around there’s a different sort of view of it, and people take it less seriously and while it may have some sort of underlying political messages, I think now the main purpose is nostalgia and entertainment.
Although the movies are now off of Netflix, new and old fans alike are still watching on other streaming services. And they’re looking ahead to November, when The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will hit theaters.
(music: ending track from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part II)
ALLAN: I love The Hunger Games!
For WNUR News, I’m Brandon Kondritz.
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