Hunger Games: Catching Fire predicted to make nearly $1 billion

It's not out for two months yet, but movie analysts are already predicting big numbers for 'Hunger Games' sequel 'Catching Fire'.

According to Variety, the film should make north of $950 million (£595 million) – broken down as $375 million (£235 million) in the US and another $575 million (£360 million) worldwide.

The sums come from Alan Gould, a Wall Street analyst from company Evercore.

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“We are projecting almost $400 million of profit from ‘Catching Fire,’ the Hunger Games sequel,” he told Variety, “versus an estimated lifetime profit of $325 million from the original.”

While there's little chance of the sequel performing anything like the spectacular flops of the summer, these numbers must be encouraging for producer Lionsgate, which thanks to the 'Twilight' movies and now the 'Hunger Games' series is the biggest independent studio in the US.

While the first film made nearly $700 million worldwide, it's certainly not inconceivable that 'Catching Fire' could be heading for the $1 billion mark.

It also received roundly good reviews from the critical community.

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Thanks to her consequent Oscar win for 'Silver Linings Playbook', Jennifer Lawrence is perhaps the most sought-after actresses in Hollywood, while an increasingly impressive cast continues to be confirmed for 'Catching Fire'.

As well as Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Banks, Lenny Kravitz, Donald Sutherland and Stanley Tucci, the cast is now bolstered by heavyweights like Philip Seymour Hoffman, Julianne Moore, who was recently confirmed as playing the rebellion leader President Coin.

'Catching Fire' is due out on November 21. The next installment 'Mockingjay' will be split into two parts, the first out on November 21, 2014, and the second following on November 20, 2015.