Peter Dinklage Cast in 'Hunger Games' Prequel, Director Francis Lawrence Is 'Thrilled'

Peter Dinklage is joining the cast of the upcoming The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes!

The Game of Thrones star was just announced as the latest actor to join the prequel film as production is currently underway.

“With production underway, we couldn’t be more excited about the way this cast has come together and thrilled to be welcoming Peter Dinklage to Panem,” Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group president Nathan Kahane shared in a statement.

“Peter is not just a fan favorite actor who brings a commanding presence to every part he plays,” he continued. “He is one of the best actors alive. He will bring a formidable, charismatic authority to the important role of the dean of the Academy.”

See who he’s playing inside…

Peter has been cast as Casca Highbottom, the dean of the Academy, in the adaptation of Suzanne Collins‘ book.

“Dean Highbottom is one of the most powerful people in Snow’s (Tom Blyth) life. As the austere and vindictive face of the games, he sets the rules that will determine every aspect of Coriolanus’s fate. I’m thrilled that Peter will be bringing him to life,” director Francis Lawrence said.

“I cannot think of an actor more perfectly suited to inhabit the role of Highbottom. As the man credited with conceiving the Hunger Games and the Dean of the Academy, Casca Highbottom is a character with secrets. Peter’s magnetism, intensity and dark humor will infuse him with the intelligence, depth and pathos that the role demands,” producer Nina Jacobson added.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is currently in production in Poland, and is set for a November 2023 release.

Find out more casting news here!