Rachel Zegler's The Hunger Games is reportedly flopping in the worst possible way

As per reports by CNBC, the new installment of The Hunger Games movie series The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes finds itself in troubled waters. According to the reports, the film is projected to earn between $42 million and $55 million. This amount is notably lower than its predecessors' over $100 million openings in the Hunger Games series.

Set 60 years before the original saga, this prequel centers on the young Coriolanus Snow, the future president of Panem. However, despite positive reviews and a 61% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, there's uncertainty about its ability to attract audiences comparable to the earlier films.

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What experts have to say about the upcoming The Hunger Games movie's business

A still from the upcoming movie (Image via Lionsgate Movies)

Despite low projections, Shawn Robbins, chief analyst at BoxOffice.com, finds the position of the prequel interesting. In his LinkedIn post, he notes that expectations are high, suggesting it might open with earnings similar to The Marvels. This comes after The Marvels performed below expectations.

This expectation comes even though the prequel lacks the star power of Jennifer Lawrence, who was in the earlier films. Furthermore, Robbins points out that the fan base has aged, and the popularity of the young adult genre has declined since its peak over a decade ago.

Additionally, he highlights the uncertainty about how much the new story will appeal to today's young female audience, especially with an entirely new cast.

He said,

"It's an interesting position for The Hunger Games prequel because the expectation has suddenly become that it has a chance to open on par with 'The Marvels,' give or take after the latter film lived down to bearish forecasts...The fan base is a little bit older now, the [young adult] genre is beyond its peak of popularity more than a decade ago."

In addition to Shawn Robbins, Paul Dergarabedian, a senior media analyst at Comscore, speaks about the franchise's unique appeal. According to CNBC, Paul believes that the new installment will use the success of the original films to achieve a strong opening. He predicts over $50 million in earnings for the prequel's debut, highlighting its intriguing and exciting origin story.

He said,

"There has always been a certain magic surrounding the Hunger Games franchise...This latest installment looks to take the goodwill generated by the original films in the series and parlay that into what promises to be solid $50 [million] plus debut for this intriguing and exciting origin story."

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What is the opening weekend collection for the previous Hunger Games movies?

According to a few sources, here's the opening weekend collection for all The Hunger Games movies:

Movie name	Release year	Franchise opening weekend
Hunger Games	2012	$152.5 million
Hunger Games: Catching Fire	2013	$158 million
Hunger Games: The Mockingjay Part One	2014	$121.9 million
Hunger Games: The Mockingjay Part Two	2015	$102.6 million

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Rachel Zegler thinks The Hunger Games was the inspiration for series like Divergent

Rachel Zegler discussing the making of the movie (Image via Lionsgate Movies)

In a promotional video for the new Hunger Games movie, Rachel Zegler credited the film as the inspiration for series like Divergent and Shadowhunters. Moreover, she applauded Suzanne Collins for pioneering a young, anti-establishment female character.

Zegler stated,

"The Hunger Games kind of started that era of like Divergent and Shadowhunters. You know, it was like, she was really, Suzanne was the first to write this young woman who was anti-establishment, anti-government..."

Additionally, Rachel's views echo Jennifer Lawrence's comments from the Variety interview. In the interview, Lawrence discussed her initial concerns about criticism for playing a female lead in an action movie like The Hunger Games. She expressed satisfaction in seeing current movies disproving those doubts and breaking new ground.

Lawrence also mentioned that the movie set the stage for other movies featuring young, rebellious female protagonists. However, Rachel's views weren't received well by fans. They, in turn, called her "smug" and "arrogant."

Fans reacting to the opinion of Rachel Zegler (Image via YouTube/TheQuatering)

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In conclusion, the prequel faces a challenging landscape, with projections suggesting a lower opening than its predecessors. Despite positive reviews and an intriguing backstory set 60 years before the original, uncertainties linger about its appeal to an older fan base with the young adult genre past its peak.