The Hunger Games is a dystopia set in what used to be the United States of America, hundreds of years in the future. The exact year has never been explicitly stated in either the books or the films—which has left fans wondering exactly when does the original Hunger Games trilogy and its prequel take place?
The timeline
Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark volunteer (i.e., get reaped) for the 74th annual Hunger Games. The two are also reaped for the 75th annual Hunger Games, which then leads to Katniss being rescued by the rebels of District 13 while Peeta is captured and tortured. The war in Mockingjay is implied to only take a few months, with Snow being executed that very winter.
The Hunger Games is said to take place hundreds of years in the future, though the exact date remains unconfirmed. As a result, many fans use ATT, or “After the Treaty of Treason,” as a way of noting dates in the franchise. The Hunger Games takes place in 74 ATT, and A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes takes place in 10 ATT.
However, we do have one potential date. The original script for The Hunger Games stated that the film was set 300 years in the future. If this setting is accurate, that means the first movie takes place in 2312, with its sequels taking place in 2313, and the prequel, A Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, taking place in the year 2248.
This setting of 300 years in the future is currently unconfirmed. However, Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins was one of the screenwriters who worked on the original film and likely had input regarding these details.
Another interesting bit of info is that The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes reveals that Reaping Day—the day tributes are chosen for the Games—is on July 4. Katniss indicates that she and most other citizens of Panem don’t know the history of what existed before Panem, meaning they wouldn’t know the significance of the date.
However, the Capitol clearly does and appears to delight in the irony of setting Reaping Day on a date that was once meant to symbolize freedom and independence from tyranny. Of course, there is a brutal irony to that, especially since the Capitol and the Districts are meant to reflect the worst aspects of the United States.
(featured image: Lionsgate)
