The Hunger Games is a popular and successful franchise that has seen five films thus far, with The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes being the latest but the origin story.
The film was released worldwide on November 17, 2023, and garnered a positive reception from viewers but left many people perplexed about the ending. So, what happened at the film’s conclusion?
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes film pits Coriolanus Snow against his lover, Lucy Gray, whom he believes has led him to a trap after learning that he has killed three people. He shoots her with a gun, but Lucy Gray’s fate is left unexplained. She may have returned to District 13 to become the ancestor of Katniss Everdeen.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes Ending Explained: The Beginning of Snow’s Ruthless Reign
The film starts on a great note, showing us the sweet relationship between Lucy and Snow, as evidenced by the latter’s help in the former winning the 10th Hunger Games.
However, Snow is forced to work as a Peacekeeper after Dr. Gaul and Dean Highbottom learn how he cheated to help Lucy secure the win.
Eventually, he reunites with Lucy and learns that Sejanus has also become a Peacekeeper like him but is involved with an arms dealer named Spruce. Seizing the opportunity, Snow conveys it to Dr. Gaul using a Jabberjay.
Following that, Snow, Sejanus, and Spruce get themselves involved in an incident where Billy Taupe (Lucy’s ex-boyfriend) and his girlfriend, Mayfair Lipp, who is also the mayor’s daughter, are murdered.
With the mayor taking extreme measures to find the murderers, both Sejanus and Spruce are hanged, but Lucy and Snow escape District 12. However, Snow unfortunately slips that he killed three people, but Lucy is only aware of two.
After they eventually come across the weapons he used to kill Billy Taupe, he wants to get rid of them to avoid any loose ends, but things take a weird turn when misunderstandings take place between the couple.
Soon after, Lucy ventures into the forest to find some food, but when Snow goes looking for her and finds a snake that almost kills him on her scarf, he believes that she has tried to kill him after learning about his murders.
He eventually finds her, shoots with a gun, returns to the Capitol, and enrolls in the university on scholarship from Dr. Gaul. Unfortunately, his enrollment changed a lot of things for the Capitol, including the death of Dean Highbottom.
When Dean reveals that the Hunger Games were never supposed to be a thing since it was a game planned on a whim when he was drunk with Snow’s father, Snow poisons and kills him, eventually becoming a significant contributor to developing the tradition of Hunger Games.
What Happened to Lucy? Where Did She Go?
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes has left its ending ambiguous, especially with Lucy’s character. She was shot by Snow, but it seemed like she survived it and escaped from his grasp.
Since the movie never revealed what happened to her and left it for open interpretation, here’s our take.
Lucy may have escaped to District 13, which has been hidden from the Capitol, and became the ancestor of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) or was simply killed by the mayor who chased them before in District 12.
However, the first conclusion seems befitting since her character would be wasted if she was simply killed, and the whole mystery element doesn’t go well with the second ending.
So, have you seen The Hunger Games prequel yet? What are your thoughts on its ending?
