The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 debuts first trailer

By Rick Marshall September 16, 2014

The first trailer for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 has debuted online, offering a sneak peek at the third installment of the wildly popular franchise based on Suzanne Collins’ trilogy of novels.

If the big-screen sequel follows in the footsteps of its source material (and it should), the third film is expected to pick up right where the second chapter left off: with the deadly games broken by the actions of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) and a post-apocalyptic revolution in the air. The film is directed by I Am Legend filmmaker Francis Lawrence, who reprises his role behind the camera after directing the second film in the franchise, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.

The official synopsis for the film is as follows:

“Mockingjay – Part 1 finds Katniss Everdeen (Lawrence) in District 13 after she literally shatters the games forever. Under the leadership of President Coin (Julianne Moore) and the advice of her trusted friends, Katniss spreads her wings as she fights to save Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) and a nation moved by her courage.”

The first two films in the franchise have raked in more than $1.5 billion at the box office, so it makes sense that the studio would want to break up the third and final chapter of the series into two parts and extend the series. Still, there’s some concern as to what sort of padding will take place to build out the final novel into two feature-length stories.

Along with Lawrence, Hutcherson, and Moore, the film also stars Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Philip Seymour Hoffman (thanks to scenes filmed prior to his death), Jeffrey Wright, Sam Claflin, Jena Malone, Stanley Tucci, and Donald Sutherland.

The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1 hits theaters November 21.

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