The first trailer has arrived for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes, the upcoming prequel set 64 years before the first Hunger Games film that introduced us to Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss Everdeen.

The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes follows a young Coriolanus Snow (played by Tom Blyth, Billy the Kid), the man that will eventually become the tyrannical President of Panem. The young Snow, whose once-proud family has fallen from grace in a postwar Capitol, is the last hope for his failing lineage. With his livelihood threatened, Snow is reluctantly assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird (Rachel Zegler, West Side Story), a tribute from the impoverished District 12. But after Lucy Gray’s charm captivates the audience of Panem, Snow sees an opportunity to shift their fates. With everything he has worked for hanging in the balance, Snow unites with Lucy Gray to turn the odds in their favour. Battling his instincts for both good and evil, Snow sets out on a race against time to survive and reveal if he will ultimately become a songbird or a snake.

The film is directed by Francis Lawrence, returning to the franchise after directing Hunger Games movies Catching Fire and Mockingjay Parts 1 & 2. The supporting cast includes Peter Dinklage, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, Jason Schwartzman, and Viola Davis.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes will open in Australian cinemas on November 16th and U.S. cinemas on November 17th.