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"Not my movie ex being Voldemort": Rachel Zegler reacts to Ralph Fiennes’ casting as President Snow in Hunger Games prequel

Rachel Zegler reacts to Voldemort actor joining the Hunger Games universe.
  • Rachel Zegler’s surprise at seeing her former “movie ex,” Lord Voldemort, return as President Snow has set the internet ablaze, but it’s more than just a cheeky social media moment—it speaks to the enduring legacy of both franchises and the excitement swirling around Lionsgate’s next Hunger Games installment. When news broke that Ralph Fiennes—best known to Zegler’s generation as the face behind He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named—would take over the mantle of President Coriolanus Snow, the reaction was swift.

    Fiennes steps into the role originally portrayed by Donald Sutherland, bringing decades of villainous gravitas to Suzanne Collins’s dystopian world. On her own X (formerly Twitter) account, Zegler couldn’t resist a playful jab:

    “Not my movie ex being Voldemort,” she quipped.

    Fans and industry insiders alike have read that cheeky post as a genuine welcome, a sign that Rachel Zegler is eager to share the arena with one of cinema’s most iconic antagonists.

     


    Ralph Fiennes as President Snow: Rachel Zegler’s take on the new regime

    Ralph Fiennes’s casting as President Snow was officially confirmed by Lionsgate on May 16, ushering in a new era for the franchise twenty-four years before Katniss Everdeen’s first arrow flew. Producer Nina Jacobson explained that they sought “one of this generation’s greatest actors” to honor Donald Sutherland’s indelible turn, a decision underscored by Fiennes’s own résumé: Amon Göth in Schindler’s List, multiple Academy Award nominations, and, of course, the chilling visage of Lord Voldemort.

    Rachel Zegler's response—referring to Fiennes as her "movie ex" on X—does more than entertain; it emphasizes the meta-textual excitement of watching two worlds converge. Zegler herself became famous by becoming Lucy Gray Baird in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a role that required both musical charisma and tough grit.

    Her tweet, both heartwarming and snarky, indicates that she believes Fiennes's Snow is going to be the next big "villain origin story," and fans have jumped on board the sentiment. While Zegler congratulated rising stars like Whitney Peak via Instagram for their roles in the same film, her reaction to Fiennes carries extra weight—this is one of Hollywood’s heavyweight villains joining the Hunger Games roster.

     


    Sunrise on the Reaping: What we know so far

    Sunrise on the Reaping, set for a November 20, 2026, theatrical release, will chronicle Haymitch Abernathy’s journey through the brutal 50th Hunger Games—an event Katniss would later come to know all too well. Lionsgate’s first wave of casting also includes Joseph Zada as a young Haymitch, Whitney Peak as Lenore Dove, Mckenna Grace as Maysilee Donner, Jesse Plemons as Plutarch Heavensbee, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Maya Hawke, Lili Taylor, and Ben Wang, among others.

    Pre-production buzz suggests filming begins in July in Germany, with a screenplay that balances the spectacle of the Games with the intricate politics of Panem’s Capitol. Think pieces and video essays have speculated about how the film will deepen Snow’s descent into tyranny, foreshadowed by his mentorship of Haymitch and the Capitol’s ever-tightening grip on its districts.

    Some critics highlight the Baird family’s musical legacy—Lucy Gray’s songs still echoing through District 12—while others point to the novel’s focus on class disparity and propaganda as ripe thematic ground for the screen. Across social media, fans have debated which iconic Hunger Games moments might make the cut and how Fiennes will channel both sophistication and cruelty into Snow’s character.

     


    Rachel Zegler's lighthearted nod to Ralph Fiennes's leap from Voldemort to President Snow sparks the imagination of fans and industry watchers both. With Sunrise on the Reaping gearing up for production, the combination of veterans' talents—Fiennes's decades-earned menace and Zegler's new, multilayered heroism—gives a prequel promise to stay true to Hunger Games heritage while striking daring new ground. Now that the Capitol's darkest manipulator takes the screen once more, Panem's future shines as exciting as ever.

    TOPICS: Rachel Zegler, Ralph Fiennes