{"id":13438,"date":"2025-11-16T14:57:54","date_gmt":"2025-11-16T19:57:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/?p=13438"},"modified":"2025-12-23T17:44:40","modified_gmt":"2025-12-23T22:44:40","slug":"the-running-man-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/2025\/11\/16\/the-running-man-2\/","title":{"rendered":"The Running Man"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The Running Man<\/strong> (2025)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Paramount\/Sci-Fi-Action-Thriller\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 133 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated R (strong violence, some gore, language)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Edgar Wright\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: Michael Bacall and Edgar Wright\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: Steven Price\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cinematography: Chung-hoon Chung\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: November 14, 2025 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Glenn Powell, Josh Brolin, Colman Domingo, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, Daniel Ezra, Jayme Lawson, Alyssa and Sienna Benn, Katy O\u2019Brian, Martin Herlihy, Sandra Dickinson, Sean Hayes, David Zayas, Karl Glusman, Angelo Gray, Simon Haines, George Carroll, Debi Mazar, Sophie Simnett, Corey Johnson.<\/p>\n

Rating<\/strong>: *** \u00bd<\/p>\n

\u00a0Perhaps the biggest question about the new version of The Running Man<\/strong> is this: is it more like Stephen King\u2019s original novella or the 1987 adaptation starring Arnold Schwarzenegger? The answer is the former. It follows the original source, written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, almost to a tee. HOWEVER, there comes a time when it diverges from the novella. The makers had to make the change. The movie wouldn\u2019t sell otherwise. That\u2019s all I\u2019ll say.<\/p>\n

\u00a0It\u2019s been a banner year for King. The Running Man<\/strong> is the fourth adaptation of his to hit movie screens this year after The Monkey, The Life of Chuck and The Long Walk. They\u2019ve all been great and I\u2019m pleased to report The Running Man<\/strong> follows suit. I thoroughly enjoyed it. It\u2019s a neat throwback to the dystopian action movies of the 80s and 90s- e.g. RoboCop, Freejack (guilty pleasure!) and Starship Troopers. It gives us a look at a bleak future ruled by the media. America has become a police state where a majority of the population lives in poverty and fear. Their only solace is FreeVee, a TV network that placates the huddled masses with idiotic reality shows and violent game shows like The Running Man.<\/p>\n

\u00a0It works like this. Contestants (called \u201crunners\u201d) have a shot at a $1B prize if they can dodge death at the hands of the show\u2019s \u201cHunters\u201d for 30 days. Ordinary citizens are encouraged to report sightings or go after runners themselves for prize money. In order to ensure the public\u2019s compliance, runners are falsely portrayed as psychopathic criminals (i.e. fake news). Runners can go anywhere in the world, but they have to report in daily via recorded tapes sent through a special mail service. Yes, the game is most definitely rigged against the players.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Ben Richards (Powell, Top Gun: Maverick) is a desperate man. His infant daughter (Alyssa and Sienna Benn) is seriously ill with the flu and he can\u2019t afford the medicine she needs. He\u2019s unemployable due to being blacklisted for attitude issues. He\u2019s been fired from multiple jobs for insubordination. Also, he\u2019s not the most personable person in the world. He\u2019s angry most of the time. His wife Sheila (Lawson, Sinners) has to work extra shifts as a hostess at a gentleman\u2019s club just to barely get by.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Realizing he has to do something, Ben goes to the network building and tries out for one of their many game shows. Despite promising his wife he won\u2019t try out for The Running Man, that\u2019s the one he\u2019s selected for. The show\u2019s producer Dan Killian (Brolin, Dune 1 & 2) tells him he thinks Ben has what it takes to win this thing. He offers him a cash advance and promises to relocate his family if he agrees to participate. Ben accepts.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Along with two other runners, tough girl Laughlin (O\u2019Brian, Christy) and nerdy goofball Jansky (Herlihy of comedy group Please Don\u2019t Destroy), Ben is vilified in front of the audience and viewing public by the show\u2019s host Bobby T (Domingo, Rustin) before being sent on his way with a 12-hour head start. He is determined NOT to lose. That\u2019s easier said than done. The Hunters are never far behind. Along the way, he becomes a folk hero much to the dismay of the network.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Ben adroitly dodges every attempt on his life and not without a little help. He has a friend (Macy, Fargo) who deals in guns and false IDs. He\u2019s rescued from a near-miss by anti-network podcaster Bradley (Ezra, All American) who provides temporary shelter. An activist out to avenge his murdered father, Elton (Cera, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), encourages Ben to keep fighting the good fight. Amelia (Jones, CODA), a motorist he takes hostage, becomes an ally once she learns the truth behind the lies she\u2019s been fed by the network.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Directed by Edgar Wright (Baby Driver), The Running Man <\/strong>is the best action movie I\u2019ve seen in a long time. He keeps things moving along at a rapid clip while lacing the film with a satirical edge. It\u2019s hard not to laugh at \u201cThe Americanos\u201d, a Kardashian-esque reality show featuring humorously grotesque caricatures of the first family of reality TV. At the same time, The Running Man<\/strong> speaks to our time with its references to fake news, AI everything, unaffordable healthcare and the heartlessness of the system that\u2019s supposed to protect the common man.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Powell does a great job in the lead. The comparisons to Bruce Willis are right on the money. He infuses Ben with a sardonic wit that fits perfectly with his anger and determination. He\u2019s also a real bad ass. Tough and resourceful, I can see Powell headlining action movies for the next ten or so years. Brolin is at his slimy best as the slick TV producer adept at lying through his teeth. Domingo looks like he\u2019s having fun as the host and tool of the government. The rest of the cast is good, but they\u2019re not on screen long enough for their characters to be developed too far beyond a surface level. I wanted to see more of Jones in the movie. She\u2019s a good actress.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The Running Man<\/strong> runs 132 minutes, but the time flies by. The action sequences are fast and well-orchestrated. It\u2019s smart with its commentary on the state of the world and where we\u2019re headed. Of course, it\u2019s probably better not to think on it too much. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Running Man (2025)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Paramount\/Sci-Fi-Action-Thriller\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 133 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated R (strong violence, some gore, language)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Edgar Wright\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: Michael Bacall and Edgar Wright\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: Steven Price\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cinematography: Chung-hoon Chung\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: November 14, 2025 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Glenn Powell, Josh Brolin, Colman Domingo, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, Daniel Ezra, Jayme […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":13453,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13438","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-action-adventure"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/The-Running-Man-POSTER.jpg?fit=620%2C918&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13438","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13438"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13438\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13455,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13438\/revisions\/13455"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/13453"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}