Netflix Gets The Best Dystopian Sci-Fi Franchise Of The Last Decade

By Jonathan Klotz
| Published 12 seconds ago

Over a decade after the release of the first film, and nearly 20 years since the debut of the first novel, people still can’t get enough of The Hunger Games. The dystopian sci-fi franchise that turned death games into entertainment has stood the test of time. It was a record-setting classic before the end of the first film’s opening weekend, and now, all five films in The Hunger Games franchise are on Netflix. 

The Hunger Games Set The World On Fire

The Hunger Games turned Jennifer Lawrence into a star as Katniss Everdeen, the volunteer tribute from District 12. Her fight for survival during the nationally televised Hunger Games kickstarted a revolution that would eventually take down the corrupt government lording over the remains of North America. It was also so packed with stars, you forgot that Jack Quaid played the Tribute from District 1.

Compared to the Japanese cult-classic Battle Royale, The Hunger Games took the existing genre of death games and took it to the next level. Catching Fire, the second film, went back into the arena for another go, while the final films in Katniss’ story, Mockingjay Part 1 and Part 2, put the focus on the raging Panem civil war. Every single one of them was a hit, and every single one of them has been among Netflix’s top movies since joining the service.

The One Franchise That Does Prequels Correctly

The outlier is 2023’s The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, a prequel focused on the backstory of President Snow (Donald Sutherland in the first few movies, Tom Blyth in the prequel), and his love for Lucy (Rachel Zegler), a District 12 tribute. It proved that the dystopian world could expand beyond Katniss Everdeen, and that the movies didn’t need Jennifer Lawrence to sell them. It’s also available on Netflix right now, slipping in and out of the Netflix Top Ten. 

A new film, Sunrise on the Reaping, will arrive on November 20th, and this time it’s the story of Haymitch (Woody Harrelson in The Hunger Games, Joseph Zada here). McKenna Grace plays Maysilee Donner, who joins Haymitch as another Tribute from District 12. The novel has been out for awhile, but if you saw the first few films, you know Haymitch is a man haunted by his past, so it’s safe to say that things don’t go well during the 50th Annual Hunger Games.

The Hunger Games Has Outgrown Its YA Roots

The Hunger Games franchise has gone from Young Adult novels to the big screen since 2009. Most studios would kill to have five films of this quality, and a lot of that can be attributed first, to the original author, Suzanne Collins, and secondly, to the franchise’s director, Francis Lawrence.Lawrence has directed all but the original film and he’s been so good at bringing the teenage death games to life that he was the first one to figure out how to adapt Stephen King’s The Long Walk.  

All five of The Hunger Games films are the best of the 2010’s young adult adaptation trend. Yes, there’s a love triangle, but as the stakes get higher it fades into the background. What’s left is a dystopian franchise that embraces its cruel, callous setting with open arms, puts all of its heroes through the wringer, and always remembers that there’s hope for a better tomorrow. 

The Hunger Games franchise is now streaming on Netflix.