Two months ago, Deadline reported that Lionsgate was trying hard to get the 127 Hours, Slumdog Millionaire and The Full Monty writer to adapt the second of Collins's novels.  Apparently that panned out, as Kurt Orzeck of The Wrap has word that Beaufoy is currently writing the script under the supervision of Ross, who is deep in post-production on the first film but is set to take the reigns on Catching Fire, too.

The Hunger Games screenplay was written by Collins, Ross, and Billy Ray, who previously wrote and directed Shattered Glass and Breach.  No word as to why Ray isn't on board.  It could be any number of the projects he's currently associated with, including Peter Pan Begins, Captain Phillips, the English-language remake of The Secret in the Eyes, or Rob Marshall and Johnny Depp's remake of The Thin Man.

In August, almost eight months before the release of The Hunger Games, Lionsgate announced a November 22, 2013 release date for Catching Fire.  All of this is, of course, predicated on the assumption that the first film will live up to commercial expectations.  While that seems likely, it would be interesting to see how things proceed if it turns into a shamblefest.

The mini-major studio has been adept at generating interest in the adaptation, treating it as an event every step of the way, with particular attention paid to casting.  Jennifer Lawrence, an Oscar nominee last year for her performance in Winter's Bone and wearer of blue scales as Mystique in X-Men: First Class, is playing heroine Katniss Everdeen in all three (or four) movies.  Josh Hutcherson and Liam Hemsworth, meanwhile, play the male leads Peeta Mellark and Gale Hawthorne, with a supporting cast that includes Elizabeth Banks, Wes Bentley, Woody Harrelson, Stanley Tucci, Lenny Kravitz, Toby Jones, and Donald Sutherland, whose character will be far more important in the sequel.

The Hunger Games debuts in theaters on March 23rd, followed by Catching Fire around Thanksgiving of 2013.