Quentin Tarantino Says Hunger Games Lifted from a Japanese Classic
Quentin Tarantino reignites a blockbuster debate, accusing The Hunger Games of lifting its premise from Japanese cult landmark Battle Royale — claiming the billion-dollar franchise borrowed heavily from the 2000 film without giving credit.
Quentin Tarantino jumped into a long-running fan debate and did not tiptoe around it: he thinks The Hunger Games lifted its core idea from the 2000 Japanese cult hit Battle Royale. He said it on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, he said it loudly, and he clearly wants people to stop pretending they do not see it.
What Tarantino actually said
'I do not understand how the Japanese writer didn't sue Suzanne Collins for every fucking thing she owns... They just ripped off the fucking book.'
His argument is simple: the overlap is so obvious that, in his view, book reviewers missed it because they were not watching a Japanese genre film from 2000. Once movie critics eventually saw Battle Royale, he says they recognized the DNA but framed The Hunger Games as a toned-down version.
How he got hooked on Battle Royale
Tarantino has real history with this movie. He first saw Battle Royale in Japan while scouting for Kill Bill. Director Kinji Fukasaku invited him to a private screening, and Tarantino walked in cold. By his telling, it blew his head off in the best way — he had no idea what he was about to see, and then it just went feral.
Months later, he caught a midnight screening at the Seattle Film Festival. He already knew what was coming and loved watching an unsuspecting American crowd get walloped by it. In his words, having that insider knowledge felt like power.
The timeline, quick and clean
- Early Kill Bill prep in Japan: Fukasaku brings him to a private Battle Royale screening; Tarantino is floored.
- Months later: midnight Battle Royale screening at the Seattle Film Festival; he enjoys watching the audience discover it cold.
- Now: on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, he says The Hunger Games cribbed from Battle Royale and wonders why no lawsuit ever happened.
Where this fits in Tarantino's rankings
He is in the middle of rolling out his picks for the 20 best movies of the 21st century so far, and he slotted Battle Royale at No. 11. He also spent time on the podcast talking about how certain films ripple through filmmakers and audiences, using examples to make the case. He says the top 10 will be revealed on the next episode.
Bottom line
Plenty of people have compared The Hunger Games to Battle Royale over the years. Tarantino just said the quiet part out loud — and then some — while reminding everyone he saw the Japanese film early, up close, and with the guy who made it. Whether you agree with him or not, he is not hedging here: to him, this is Battle Royale with the edges sanded down.