Lionsgate has set March 23, 2012 as the release date for the film version of author Suzanne Collins’ bestselling science fiction novel, ‘The Hunger Games‘.

‘The Hunger Games’ is the first book in the epic young adult novel trilogy set in a post-apocalyptic America. In the novel, a young heroine, Katniss Everdeen, must participate in televised battles that pit youths from 12 districts in an annual fight-to-the-death event called the Hunger Games.

The first novel was released in 2008 with its sequel, ‘Catching Fire’, released in 2009 and the final novel in the trilogy, ‘Mockingjay’, being  released in 2010.

With a rumoured budget of $60 million, Director Gary Ross (‘Pleasantville’, Seabiscuit’) is expected to begin shooting the film in late spring or summer. Currently, a cast has not been announced, but a number of actresses have expressed an interest in the lead role including: Lyndsy Fonseca (‘Kick-Ass’, ‘Nikita’), Jodelle Ferland (‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse’),Chloe Moretz (‘Let Me In’, ‘Kick-Ass’), Malese Jow (‘The Vampire Diaries’) and Kaya Scodelario (‘Moon’, ‘Clash of the Titans’).