Lionsgate Wants To Make 'Hunger Games' Prequels With More Arena Action

Across four installments, the Hunger Games saga has made the kind of money that most movie franchises can only dream about. The first three made over $2 billion combined; the latest and last installment, Mockingjay – Part 2 has raked in $524 million so far and counting. And, well, you can probably guess where this is going.

It was only a matter of time before someone figured out a way to keep the money flowing with more movies, and now Lionsgate may have finally hit upon a solution: prequels. Specifically, prequels that involve a lot more arena action. More about the possible Hunger Games prequels after the jump. 

Speaking at the UBS Global Media and Communications Conference in New York, Burns compared The Hunger Games to Harry Potter, and promised the franchise would "live on and on and on." Which apparently means taking a page out of the Harry Potter playbook. Just as Warner Bros. plans to keep raking in those box office Galleons with the 1920s-set prequel Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, Burns wants to dig back into the history of Panem.

Among other things, Burns wants to see more of the Games themselves. Or rather, he believes that's what younger fans want. "The one thing that kids say they missed (from the early Hunger Games films) was there was no arenas," he said. "If we went backwards there would obviously be arenas." The first Hunger Games chronicled the 74th annual Games, and Catching Fire depicted the 75th Games, but the two Mockingjay movies contained no arena action whatsoever.

Lionsgate has been toying with different ideas to wring more money out of the Hunger Games franchise. A Hunger Games stage show is planned for London in 2016, and Hunger Games rides and theme parks are in the works. This isn't even the first we've heard about the potential for more Hunger Games movies. Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer stated he was "actively" considering "prequel and sequel possibilities," and Hunger Games star Josh Hutcherson may or may not have let slip that he knows about these plans.

There's clearly a lot of backstory to be explored within the world of Panem, but let's hope the prequels go beyond just the fun of watching (fictional) children murder each other for rich people's entertainment. Especially seeing as we already know none of the past Games lead to a successful revolution. What stories would you like to see explored in the (probably inevitable) Hunger Games prequels?