Viola Davis to star in The Hunger Games prequel as villain

Viola Davis has recently joined The Hunger Games franchise as a villain in the prequel The Ballad of Songbirds And Snakes, announced on movie’s official social media page on Monday.

Davis has been cast as Dr. Volumnia Gaul, the Head Game-maker in the new spin-off movie, confirmed the movie-makers on Instagram.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nina Jacobson, the producer of the movie, called the 57-year-old the “creative team’s dream casting for the part”.

“We are incredibly fortunate to have an actor with Viola’s extraordinary range and presence to play this pivotal role,” Jacobson told the publication.

Reportedly, Francis Lawrence, the director of the hit franchise, described The Help star’s character in the movie as “cruel as she is creative and as fearsome as she is formidable”.

Other than Davis, the new prequel’s cast also included West Side Story star Rachel Zegler as District 12 tribute Lucy Gray Baird, Tom Blyth as a young Coriolanus Snow (played by Donald Sutherland in The Hunger Games movies), Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman, Hunter Schafer and Josh Andrés Rivera.

Meanwhile, on the work front, the Doubt actress will commence work as Harriet Tubman on an untitled movie soon after filming The Hunger Games prequel.

To note, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes will reportedly release in theatres on November 17, 2023.