Fans of The Hunger Games are excited about the forthcoming prequel movie The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. The book's ending is ambiguous, so you might wonder if Lucy Gray is alive by the end of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
Will the movie clarify, or even elaborate on Lucy Gray's possible connections to characters from The Hunger Games trilogy?
Warning: Spoilers about The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes book by Suzanne Collins are discussed below:
Does Lucy Gray Survive the 10th Hunger Games?
Lucy Gray survives The Hunger Games through a combination of luck and Snow's cheating to help her.
She becomes the first District 12 Hunger Games Victor; in fact, Katniss indirectly mentions her in the first chapter of The Hunger Games book.
During the Reaping, Katniss mentions that there have only ever been two Hunger Games Victors from District 12, of whom only one, Haymitch, is alive.
Katniss doesn't say much about the other, dead Victor. Whether she knows anything about Lucy Gray is unclear.
Is Lucy Gray Still Alive at the End of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes?
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes leaves Lucy Gray's fate ambiguous.
Lucy Gray survives the Hunger Games and returns to District 12 and her job as a performer.
However, a series of events complicates her life there, making it clear that she will never be truly free.
She and Snow become further involved when his cheating to help her win is exposed, causing him to get expelled and forced to work as a Peacekeeper.
Snow requests an otherwise undesirable post in District 12 to see Lucy again.
Initially, he seems to care about her and wishes to protect her. They start dating and plan a life together.
Despite the evident differences in their ideologies, Lucy Gray and Snow plan to run away together.
Lucy Gray ends up trying to flee from Snow; it's unclear if she always planned to do so, or if she only decided it to when she understood the full extent of his treachery.
Enraged, Snow shoots at her multiple times, but she uses the mockingjays' song to confuse him about her location, and, being poisoned, he has no way of knowing if he missed.
Eventually, Snow redeems himself in the eyes of his superiors and returns to the Capitol where he keeps advancing his political career, only occasionally thinking of Lucy Gray.
It's implied that Lucy Gray either died or went into hiding, as people in District 12 believed that the Mayor had killed her.
Is Lucy Gray Related to Katniss Everdeen?
There are several hints throughout The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes that suggest Lucy Gray might be Katniss' ancestor. This, however, remains unconfirmed.
Like Katniss and her father, Lucy Gray was a good singer. The Hunger Games prequel reveals that she created "The Hanging Tree;" this infamous song becomes a key symbol of the rebellion during Katniss' time.
Moreover, Lucy Gray had a goat she would milk, just like Katniss' sister, Prim.
Even more tellingly, she was knowledgeable about herbs and was particularly fond of katniss, Katniss' namesake flower.
Not to mention that she liked mockingjays and even used them to trick Snow!
All the above suggest a strong connection between Katniss's family and Lucy Gray's legacy.
Some fans have even suggested that Lucy Gray could be Katniss' paternal grandmother.
Of course, there are a few issues with this theory. First of all, even if Lucy Gray died before Katniss' birth, Katniss' family would likely know if they were related to a Hunger Games Victor.
Moreover, Lucy Gray had managed to make a few enemies in District 12 so we can't see how she could return to the Seam.
Some readers have suggested that Lucy Gray could have assumed a different identity, but, since she was a famous singer, this isn't very plausible.
Others still suggest that Lucy Gray isn't Katniss' ancestor at all, and point towards Lucy's fellow singer, Maude Ivory, as a plausible connection to Katniss.
As Lucy's close friend, Maude Ivory might have carried her legacy and passed it on to the next generation.
Of course, since the Seam was a tight-knit community, it's possible that songs, knowledge, and small acts of rebellion might have been common to many people.
Therefore, Katniss might have been exposed to those without being related to Lucy Gray by blood.
One thing is for certain: Snow's past with Lucy Gray explains much of his mistrust of Katniss, and it makes Katniss' defeating Snow all the more satisfying.
Related: Will There Be Another Hunger Games Book?
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