So what’s next, you ask? Personally, I’m trying to keep calm. We are officially only one month away from Sunrise on The Reaping.
The press tour for the next instalment of The Hunger Games franchise is officially underway.
Here’s a brief overview if you have no idea of what I’m talking about: Only last year in 2025, Suzanne Collins released her next novel in The Hunger Games universe - Sunrise on the Reaping. This novel is about everyone’s favourite alcoholic victor, Haymitch Abernathy.
Although this story isn’t about the Haymitch we know and have slowly come to love. The book tells the tale of the 50th Hunger Games, the second Quarter Quell. Is this starting to sound familiar? Well, it’s the games that Haymitch won. The story covers from the reaping to his “victory” and beyond - giving us the details on how he came to be the man looking for any consumable liquor and substance in sight.
Fans globally became entranced by the story and now, under two years later - we’re getting the film adaptation.
Sydney native Joseph Zada portrays a younger Haymitch Abernathy, and Mckenna Grace plays fellow District 12 tribute, Maysilee Donner.
After attending the launch of an exhibition in Paris, Zada and Grace kicked off their tour in style down under.
On the evening of the 14th of October 2026, an exclusive guest list was invited to attend the first Australian Hunger Games fan event. The Eveleigh is a stunning ballroom in Sydney, and it was transformed into a breathtaking Capitol-style banquet for the night.
Guests were greeted with champagne on arrival as they stepped through the grand entrance with bright, coloured flags draping down accompanied by purple and orange lights reflecting on every surface.
My jaw dropped instantly, every corner of the room was filled with colourful and vibrant floral displays brought to life by The Yard & Co.
The DJ of the night, Adam Katz made sure the dance floor was always full and sent us all back to the 2010s when we all fell in love with the characters from Panem.
The event was in collaboration with The Grounds - widely known for their themed laneways at The Grounds of Alexandria. If you’ve never heard of them - well, they specialise in leaving you speechless.
The candle-lit grazing tables were towering with layered temptations. Freshly baked loaves looked like they came straight out of Peeta’s bakery. Tiered, frosted cakes made your mouth water. The exotic fruit platters and flavourful pastries were some of the best that I’ve ever had. Notably, the lamingtons were life-changing. They were bursting with a skilled combination of tart and sweet flavours that I still can’t stop thinking about. Silver trays were piled high with delicious chocolate-covered strawberries - Effie’s favourite.
Fans of the franchise truly did arrive dressed ready to impress - as the invitation asked for. Flowing ballgowns, adorned tuxedos and film inspired costumes took the event by storm.
In the back corner, we got the chance to admire some of the screen-used costumes from the film, Haymitch’s arena poncho and Maysilee’s reaping dress.
The host of the evening, comedian Joel Creasey sauntered onto the stage to let us know how the night would proceed.
The most shocking news of the night was that stars of the film would be joining us very soon.
Making it feel even more immersive, there was a countdown announcement leading up to the guests of honour arriving through lifted curtains.
As the stars made their entrance, they walked to take photos against the whimsical floral display and golden sculpture that depicted the symbol of a joint bird and snake - straight from the cover of the 2025 novel, originally designed by Tim O’Brien.
Styled by Molly Dickson, Mckenna looked beautiful in a Vera Wang gown. Her makeup was done by Molly Warkentin and looked absolutely glowing complimenting Alan White’s hair-styling with the flowing braids, flowers and butterflies. It was a beautiful, modern tribute to Maysilee.
Joseph - styled by Jason Bolden - came with slick-backed hair done by Pete Lennon, a striking black ERL utilitarian jumpsuit paired with a white collared shirt and black tie.
Fans had a few minutes to join the stars at the press wall for photos and autographs before being brought up on stage for a short Q&A.
Joel Creasey brought his best Caesar Flickerman flair while asking a few choice questions.
First Creasey asked what makes this Hunger Games so vicious.
Mckenna was quick to answer, “There’s a lot. I think it’s a testament to Suzanne Collins’ writing. We’ve been watching these stories, we’ve been reading these books for so many years, and not only does it still feel relevant but she found ways to re-introduce the scenarios that we’ve seen a hundred times over…she twisted the chariot races, she twisted the reaping, the games have twice the number of tributes…I think this makes it very intense.”
As a follow up, Mckenna was asked why would you choose Maysilee as an ally, Mckenna nervously diverted the question to Joe.
Joe smiled and happily reported, “She is brutally honest to a fault, that is the kind of person I would want as an ally. She’s also lethal with a blow dart”.
Mckenna smiled, then was asked the same about Haymitch. She looked at Joe, trying to figure out what to say without spoiling the film.
“He’s really good at fighting in this movie, surprisingly…and he seems very loyal.”
As it was Mckenna’s first time in Australia, fans were eager to know how her experience had been, and with Joseph at her side, she had the best tour guide on hand.
“It’s been a blast,” Mckenna was pleased to report, “the second that I landed, I went to the zoo with my mom which was really cute and today we went to Bondi which was fun”.
Mckenna recalled, “I got to try a Tim Tam…right?” Mckenna questioned as she looked over to Joe. Zada leaned over to the microphone, “A Tim Tam slam.” He lovingly corrected.
They laughed and Mckenna continued, “It’s nice to see Joe’s family, friends and meet everybody and go see around, it’s been fun!”
It was so lovely to see their sibling dynamic in person, they’re so fun to talk to and I’m so eager to see their characters interact on screen.
As a parting gift, prize winners were drawn by the cast in the fashion of dramatically choosing a number out of a large bowl, reminiscent of the reaping scenes in the original films. They called out a number that would correspond with a wristband, given to guests prior to entry.
We were then treated to a surprise silk aerial performance organised by avant-garde entertainment curators, Cirkus Bizurkius.
Guests were invited to eat, drink and dance the night away. Later in the evening Zada and Grace made their way onto the floor to greet guests. Both Joseph and Mckenna truly did their best to ensure everyone got the chance for a photo, an autograph or to ask a question. After spending their evening with us, they went outside to greet fans that didn’t get the opportunity to attend as they didn’t want them to miss out. As we exited the ballroom for the night, we were given a poster with intricate artwork of the film’s cast.
Alongside Zada and Grace, the film holds a star-studded cast featuring Glenn Close, Elle Fanning, Maya Hawke, Ralph Fiennes, Billy Porter, Iris Apatow, and Kieran Culkin just to name a few.
Not only that, did I mention Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutcherson are also reprising their roles for the film? This is major for fans of The Hunger Games.
Whether you’ve memorised the book cover to cover, or are going into the film blind and ready to be shocked - you don’t want to miss this on the big screen.
Thank you to the wonderful Kat (@katrina_aird) for inviting me to attend with her.
Thank you to Roadshow for a night we’ll never forget.
The Hunger Games: Sunrise on The Reaping releases in Australian theatres on November 19.