Edgar Wright says that the new The Running Man remake with Glen Powell will be different from the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie in one key way.
Wright is directing an adaptation of Stephen King’s The Running Man. King’s novel was originally published in 1982 and was previously turned into a 1987 movie starring Schwarzenegger that was directed by Michael Glaser.
“In the year 2019, America is a totalitarian state where the favorite television program is The Running Man — a game show in which prisoners must run to freedom to avoid a brutal death,” a description of the original film reads. “Having been made a scapegoat by the government, an imprisoned Ben Richards (Arnold Schwarzenegger) has the opportunity to make it back to the outside again by being a contestant on the deadly show, although the twisted host, Damon Killian (Richard Dawson), has no intention of letting him escape.
Wright’s movie will star Powell as Ben Richards, while the cast also includes Katy O’Brian, Daniel Eztra, Karl Glusman, Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, William H. Macy, Colman Domingo, and more.
What did Edgar Wright say about The Running Man remake with Glen Powell?
Speaking with Empire Magazine, Wright explained that, much like King’s book, his movie will have scenes that take place outside of the gameshow set.
“One of the things about the book that I loved was the fact that Ben Richards is out in the world on his own, so it’s like the deadliest game of hide and seek,” he said. “It does feel like making a road movie in a lot of ways: a very intense, dangerous road movie…Ben is moving through different environments and meeting different people as he tries to survive 30 days out in the wild.”
Wright also said of working with Powell on The Running Man, “I felt it was important to see somebody who hadn’t really done something like this before. It’s similar to Bruce Willis, when he was still the guy from Moonlighting, before he did Die Hard, where that adds to the suspense. Can they make it?”
The Running Man will be released in United States theaters on November 7, 2025, by Paramount Pictures.
