After the slow death of the Twilight franchise, Hollywood is pondering over what will be the next sensation that sends young girls into an obsessive, heart-stopping, tear-inducing, let-the-whole-of-youtube-know state. Yet, let’s not worry too much for the multi-billion industry, as producers have already set their sights on The Next Big Thing. Except, the Next Big Thing isn’t just a book – it’s a whole genre.

This is what I’d like to call The Hunger Games Hangover. There has been a frenzy of Young Adult dystopian rights being bought, which includes: Louis Lowry’s The Giver, Ally Condie’s Matched and Lauren Oliver’s Delirium.  It seems that ever since Katniss survived the Hunger Games, she has not only enabled the sequel, Catching Fire, to happen, but she also made The Hunger Games become one of the highest-grossing films of 2012, earning Lionsgate a staggering 686 million. Not only did the film increase the sales of the books, but also helped it’s fellow competitors in the dystopian genre. So, it doesn’t take Einstein logic to see where Hollywood will be heading next.

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You may ask, why has this sci-fi dystopian genre been such a hit with the teens? Good question, reader! It seems there can be endless of disputes of why this genre is popular, but I’ve read, watched, examined and grumbled over dystopia for quite some time now, and I’ve narrowed it down to three main reasons why this genre has become such a hit.

1. The heroes…or should I say, heroines.
After the success of The Hunger Games, Hollywood seems, for the time being, to be getting it right with female movie franchises. Finally, we have heroines that can save the day and get the guy. No more screaming, stuttering, or incessant neediness. No more, ‘I can’t live without you!’ These women wipe away the tears, suck it up and start revolutions.



2. The weird, wacky and downright terrifying.
The dystopian genre gives us worlds without limits, which for some directors is a dream come true. Rules can be broken, worlds are turned upside down and the laws of life and death can be altered. So, having your story set in a dystopian society is a great platform for some action-packed, out-of –this-world sequences. And don’t we all live a bit of action added to our franchise?



3. The ‘I love you’ moments that may never be…
The romances in dystopian films are always better, because it’s never a good time to fall in love in the midst of a life-or-death rebellion, right? It just makes things complicated. But we like complicated. We like to scream at the screen. We like the build-up, the heartache, the could-have-been moments, and not to be crass…but the threat of your lover’s life does make things rather exciting.



So, whether you like it or not, 2013 will be the year of the dystopian. Prepare for societies where love is deemed wrong, prepare for the last of the human race, and of course, prepare for the return of Katniss Everdeen.