It is only a matter of time before the Hunger Games 2023 spin-off, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, hits PVOD storefronts and, eventually, its streaming home.
After laying dormant for nearly a decade, Lionsgate dipped its toes back into the Hunger Games film franchise, bringing author Suzanne Collins' 2020 prequel book to life on the big screen.
Led by Rachel Zegler and Tom Blyth, The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is performing well during its theatrical opening, having grossed $197 million in just two weeks on the silver screen (via BoxOfficeMojo).
It has also earned a stellar 89% Audience Score on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, as the studio seems to have stuck a cord of nostalgia with fans of the original Hunger Games books and films.
When Will Hunger Games 2023 Release Online?
While The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, has only just started its run in movie theaters around the world, fans have started to speculate when the movie could be released online for purchase.
According to estimates from When To Stream, the 2023 Hunger Games spin-off, will likely come to digital PVOD storefronts sometime in mid-December, with pre-orders for the film already live on several platforms.
Lionsgate's two other blockbusters of the year (John Wick 4 and Saw X) spent several weeks in theaters before appearing online, but the theatrical-to-digital window does vary between the two.
September's Saw X came to PVOD a meager 21 days after it debuted in theaters, while John Wick 4 took 62 days before it came to digital.
If this release predictions for Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes prove to be true, then that 21-day window of Saw could come into play. 21 days after the Hunger Games spin-off's theatrical release date would put the film's digital debut on Friday, December 8.
That window does seem a little lean, with the movie seeming to have some box office legs, so a realistic prediction would but the digital release of the film a week or two later on either Friday, December 15, or Friday, December 22.
Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Streaming Info
No official streaming details have been announced for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. However, with a digital release window seemingly in view for the film, one can start to see where Lionsgate may be lining the movie up for its streaming debut.
In recent years, streaming service Starz has been the official home of Lionsgate movies, with many of the studio's biggest blockbusters coming to the platform after a run in theaters and - eventually - digital.
John Wick: Chapter 4 came to Starz 175 days after its March 24, 2023 release in theaters.
Using the Keanu Reeves-led blockbuster as a template, that would mean the Hunger Games 2023 spin-off would start streaming on Starz sometime around May 2024.
However, this is only the Pay-1 window for the film (a term used to describe the first window following a title's digital and physical release).
Lionsgate also has a deal in place to bring its movies to the Universal-owned Peacock 18 months after their streaming releases, meaning if Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes does end up hitting Starz in May, then sometime around December 2025, the movie will come to Peacock.
The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is playing in theaters now.
