The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: Who Is Tigris Snow?

The release of “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,” the “Hunger Games” prequel, is just around the corner, and it’s the perfect time to catch up on everything “Hunger Games” before the release of the film on Nov. 17. The prequel, which takes place 64 years prior to the events of the Hunger Games trilogy, follows the story of Coriolanus Snow (played by Tom Blyth) and his relationship with Lucy Gray Baird, a tribute and eventual victor of the 10th Hunger Games (played by Rachel Zegler).

The film will introduce new characters like Casca Highbottom (Peter Dinklage), the dean of the Academy, and Dr. Volumnia Gaul (Viola Davis), the head game maker. But the prequel will also feature familiar characters like Tigris Snow, Coriolanus’s cousin, and one of the key characters that helped Katniss in the Capitol in “Mockingjay.” In the original movies, Tigris is played by Eugenie Bondurant, but she’ll be played by Hunter Schafer in the prequel, and the movie will explore her backstory and her relationship with her cousin.

Here’s everything to know about Tigris Snow, including spoilers for “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes.”

Tigris Snow in The Hunger Games Books

What Happens to Tigris Snow in “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes”?

In “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,” Tigris’s parents die early during the Dark Days, aka the collapse of the First Rebellion 74 years prior to the events of the Hunger Games series. After their death, she is sent to live with her cousin Coriolanus and their grandmother, Grandma’am. Tigris attends the Academy and eventually the University, where she studies fashion. Tigris and Coriolanus have a close relationship, and she supports her cousin when he is selected as a mentor for the 10th annual Hunger Games, encouraging him to meet his tribute, Lucy Gray, at the train station when she arrives at the Capitol.

Tigris grows to care for Lucy deeply and offers her clothes to wear for the interviews, mends her iconic rainbow dress, and helps with makeup as well, unofficially becoming the first stylist for the Games. Throughout the Games, Tigris is horrified by the violence and cruelty the tributes face in the arena, and eventually, it influences her decision to join the Second Rebellion later on.

Her relationship with Coriolanus sours as she watches her cousin rise to power, and she eventually comes to resent President Snow. Tigris eventually becomes an official stylist for the Games and goes through a number of cosmetic procedures to make her features more felinelike over the years. Tigris also gets several tattoos to add to her feline look.

What Happens to Tigris in the Original Hunger Games Trilogy?

After the events of “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes,” Tigris makes her first appearance in the Hunger Games trilogy in “Mockingjay” when she joins Plutarch Heavensbee and the efforts to overthrow President Snow in the Second Rebellion.

Tigris now owns a shop for fur-lined clothes in the Capitol and houses refugees during the Second Rebellion. Tigris helps hide Katniss, Peeta, and the rest of Squad 451 under her store when they enter the Capitol to assassinate Snow. Katniss recalls seeing Tigris in earlier Hunger Games, and Tigris confirms that President Snow and the Gamemakers eventually had her fired due to her surgical enhancements.

Tigris feeds them and then goes around the Capitol to collect intel for Katniss and the 451 Squad to aid in their plans to assassinate President Snow. Before they leave, Tigris provides them all with clothes to disguise them as Capitol citizens. Tigris survives the war, but her ultimate fate after that is unknown.

Tigris Snow in the The Hunger Games Movies

Tigris’s role in the original Hunger Games movie franchise was minimal, as she makes her first appearance in the final film, “Mockingjay Part II.” Like in the books, she helps hide Katniss, Peeta, and the other members of the 451 Squad, and she provides them with food, shelter, and intel on President Snow.

Schafer’s Tigris will be an important part of “The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes” movie, as viewers will meet her prior to her surgical enhancements and tattoos, and her relationship with Coriolanus will be front and center.