The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes Proves Hunger Games Learned The Wrong Lesson From Mockingjay

Warning: Contains SPOILERS for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes!

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is the first new installment in the franchise since the two-part Mockingjay movies ended the original series, and it proves the wrong lesson was learned from their performance. Years after The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and Part 2 were made and released in theaters, Suzanne Collins’ announcement that a prequel book was in the works came with a strong chance that audiences would one day see the story on the big screen. The news came as a pleasant surprise to many considering the Hunger Games franchise seemingly had reached its conclusion after only four films.

There was a certain amount of pressure on The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes to perform well and reinvigorate interest in the franchise after almost a decade passed between installments. However, the movie underperformed at the box office in its opening weekend and received the worst critical reviews for any Hunger Games movie. Both are a step down from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2, which previously set low marks in both categories. It now puts the franchise in a questionable spot to build off The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes‘ ending. Unfortunately, it seems the biggest issues came from the franchise overreacting to previous criticisms.

Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 & 2’s Reception & Box Office Explained

There is little debate that the two-part Hunger Games: Mockingjay movies marked a new low point in the young adult franchise. Following on the heels of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire making $865 million at the worldwide box office and earning franchise best reviews and Rotten Tomatoes scores, there was a sharp decline in both departments with the next two movies. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 saw its box office drop to $755 million worldwide, and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 2 only made $653 million, a new franchise low. While they were still relatively successful, the decline sent the franchise in the wrong direction.

The smaller box office hauls for both films were not too surprising given the movies’ drop in quality. Whereas the first two movies in the franchise received rave reviews from critics and general audiences, the response was much more tepid and mixed for the Mockingjay movies. They both have 70% Critics Scores on Rotten Tomatoes. Mockingjay Part 1 has an Audience Score of 71%, but Mockingjay Part 2 only has a 66% Fresh rating. There were plenty of issues audiences and critics had with each of the films on their own, but the response was not completely based on the merits of the individual movies.

One of the biggest criticisms levied against the Hunger Games franchise and Lionsgate came with the decision to split the Mockingjay book into two parts. Although this move was initially seen as a potentially promising way to tell the final chapter in Katniss Everdeen’s story (and a way to extend the franchise for another lucrative box office haul), it backfired. Critics and general viewers largely agree that the franchise’s conclusion would have been stronger if the book was condensed into one movie instead of splitting it into two.

Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes Wasn’t Split Into Two Movies Because Of Mockingjay

The reception to Mockingjay Part 1 & 2 made the Hunger Games franchise take notice and apply some of the lessons from the criticisms to The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes. This included the decision not to split the prequel book in half and make two movies out of it. This has been directly confirmed by people involved with the making of the prequel movie. The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes director Francis Lawrence, who helmed the two-part Mockingjay movies too, confirmed in an interview with EW that there was a consideration to split the source material into two movies once again. However, the backlash to Mockingjay convinced them otherwise.

It has become clear the decision not to split The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes into two movies was made with the influence of the response to Mockingjay Part 1 & 2. Prior to the prequel’s release, Francis Lawrence revealed in an interview with People that he had come to agree with audiences that splitting the Mockingjay book into two movies was a mistake. He said, “What I realized in retrospect — and after hearing all the reactions and feeling the kind of wrath of fans, critics, and people at the split — is that I realized it was frustrating. And I can understand it.”

These quotes essentially confirm that the reaction to Mockingjay Part 1 & 2 is directly responsible for The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes remaining one movie. Even though there was a thought that it could be better for the movie adaptation to split the book, Lawrence and the studio understandably feared that audiences would once again criticize them for this decision, even before seeing how the movie played out. However, this completely ignores the fact that Mockingjay and The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes are entirely different books with different narrative structures. Fear of backlash overruled a potentially better decision.

The Ballad Of Songbirds & Snakes Was Better Suited For A Two-Part Movie Adaptation

The idea of splitting The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes into two movies actually makes sense when looking at the book, especially compared to Mockingjay. The third book by Suzanne Collins was only 390 pages long, which left the two-part movie adaptation to drag out some of the events. However, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is easily the longest book in the series with over 500 pages of story written by Collins. The size of the narrative on display in the novel makes it better suited to require two movies to be adapted properly. Instead of doing so, The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes changes the book repeatedly.

It is also much easier to see where The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes‘ book could be split in half and make two compelling, and completely different, movies. The novel has a rather clean point to split the story, as the first movie could have covered the 10th Hunger Games while The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes 2‘s story could have adapted the second half where Snow becomes a Peacekeeper and reunites with Lucy Gray. Whereas Mockingjay had to create a cliffhanger for Part 1‘s ending, Lucy going back to District 12 and Snow’s treachery being discovered would make for a complete ending that still leaves room for the sequel.

Songbirds & Snakes Being Split Into Two Movies Would’ve Been Better

If The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes was split into two movies, it could have helped alleviate a few of the biggest complaints with the prequel. For starters, it would have allowed the first movie to spend more time developing Coriolanus Snow, Lucy Gray, and the rest of the characters. Spending more time establishing their relationships and personalities would make it easier for audiences to connect to them. Much of this can feel rushed by condensing the book into a two-and-a-half-hour movie, especially the seeds of Lucy and Snow’s romance.

Another benefit that could have come with Songbirds & Snakes being two movies would be a more consistent tone and narrative. The first movie would have been able to feel more like a traditional Hunger Games movie based around the 10th Hunger Games while also still focusing on the YA romance aspects of the story. The second part could then naturally be a bit darker and more serious as Snow’s days as a Peacekeeper and the District 12 setting are explored. While The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes balances the two different tones and narrative perspectives as best it can, there is still a separation.

Additionally, Lionsgate also stood to benefit from splitting the book. It would give the Hunger Games franchise two movies to re-establish a connection with audiences and win back any lost favor after the Mockingjay movies. This would come with an obvious path for a sequel as long as the first movie was successful. In reality, the future of the franchise after The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes is as mysterious as what happened to Lucy Gray, but it did not have to be that way already.