The Running Man: Read This Before November 14

Glen Powell has been in charming mode for a while. His next one is not that. The Running Man is built to shred: hard action, dark laughs, and a lot of very intentional blood spray. The trailer already hints at a sleek, savage, weirdly stylish kind of chaos. If you like your dystopias glossy and mean, this is that.

What the story actually is

Near-future, everything-is-content world. A live broadcast turns human survival into prime-time entertainment. Contestants, called Runners, have 30 days to stay alive while professional killers hunt them down on camera. The country tunes in because, well, of course it does.

Powell plays Ben Richards, a guy who signs up out of desperation to help his sick daughter and winds up becoming a symbol. At first it is just about not dying. Then it turns into a public rebellion, and the audience starts to pick sides. Fame, but make it fatal.

The game rules, because they matter

You survive, you get paid. You take out one of the Hunters, you get a bonus. The pot at the end is a very loud $1 billion. There is a nasty twist: regular citizens are allowed to kill Runners for a reward too, which keeps the paranoia on full blast. History is not on anyone's side here either. The longest anyone has made it is 197 hours, which is under nine days. Nobody is cashing retirement checks from this thing.

Yes, it is Stephen King. The book version.

The Running Man started life as a 1982 novel King published under his Richard Bachman pseudonym. This adaptation is aiming way closer to the book than the 1987 movie did. Less neon camp, more bleak satire. The system is the monster. The gore is just the delivery method.

So is it a remake of the Arnold movie?

Technically. But this is a new take, not a beat-for-beat redo. The 1987 version is a fun time capsule with biceps and one-liners. Edgar Wright's movie is leaning into the book's moral rot and media sickness. Expect Powell's Ben Richards to feel like a human on the edge, not a quip machine with plot armor.

Who is in this thing

• Glen Powell as Ben Richards
• Josh Brolin as Dan Killian
• Colman Domingo as Bobby Thompson
• Lee Pace as Evan McCone
• Jayme Lawson as Sheila Richards
• Michael Cera as Elton Parrakis
• Emilia Jones as Amelia Williams
• David Zayas as Richard Manuel
• Katy O'Brian as Laughlin

Director, tone, and why this could rip

Edgar Wright is directing, and he co-wrote the script with Michael Bacall. Wright tends to cut and stage like the movie is choreographed to its own heartbeat. Think Baby Driver precision, Scott Pilgrim pop, but pointed at a nasty dystopia. Stylish chaos is basically what he does.

Runtime, for the folks checking their watches

133 minutes. That is a good bit longer than the 1987 movie's 101 minutes, which should give the world and the satire some room to breathe. If Wright keeps the tempo tight, it will feel more like escalation than cardio.

Release date and the small scheduling chess move

Paramount is releasing The Running Man in U.S. theaters on November 14, 2025, with a global rollout on the same date. The date shifted slightly to sidestep Predator: Badlands, per JoBlo. Smart. November is stacked with action, but Wright and Powell together is a loud swing that should cut through.

The quick-hit basics

Title: The Running Man
Director: Edgar Wright
Writers: Edgar Wright and Michael Bacall
Based on: The Running Man by Stephen King (as Richard Bachman)
Runtime: 133 minutes
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Remake of: The Running Man (1987) - but closer to the book this time
U.S./Global Release: November 14, 2025

Bottom line: glossy dystopia, sharp satire, and a cast stacked with ringers. The trailer promises playful brutality. The premise has bite. I am in.