Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox.
Subscribe to our newsletter here.

Watching 2025’s “The Running Man” is like eating a big bucket of popcorn with extra butter; it fills you with joy and leaves you craving for more, but when you’re finished, something doesn’t quite sit right.

Adapted from Stephen King’s 1982 novel of the same name, “The Running Man” is a delightful, action-packed ride that even earned approval from Tom Cruise. Starring a charismatic Glen Powell and directed by Edgar Wright, the film delivers an exceptional theater experience but falls short of greatness due to its overstuffed ending.

Still, it’s an improvement from the standalone decades-old original starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. Wright’s version received high praise from Schwarzenegger, who told People that the 1987 film was his only project he wished would be revisited.

“The Running Man” is set in a modern dystopia controlled by a media monopoly called The Network. Ben Richards (Powell), a blue-collar worker in desperate need of money for his infant daughter’s medication, tries out for The Network’s savage game shows and lands a spot on the most dangerous one, “The Running Man.”

Three participants are given $1,000 and a 12-hour headstart before The Network assassins hunt them down. Throughout the game, competitors can hide anywhere, even among civilians.

Everyday people play a role by reporting the runners’ locations or killing them before the assassins do. The participants must send daily 10-minute videos to The Network, and they’re awarded $1 billion for surviving the 30 days.

For Ben, it’s simple: survive, become rich and return to his family — or die and lose everything.

Unlike “The Long Walk,” this King adaptation had me on the edge of my seat the entire time. While the premise is straightforward, it lets Powell shine.

Powell is the backbone of “The Running Man,” delivering a memorable performance for a role that could’ve felt cookie cutter if cast differently. He ditches the standard action lead through incredible emotion, capturing moments of pure rage, wit and heartbreak.

In preparation for the role, Powell, who mostly does his own stunts in the movie, talked with Cruise for hours. The legendary stunt master gave him advice for sprinting properly on camera and explained “how not to die” while filming, which paid off with impressive tricks.

Cruise has been by Powell’s side since he didn’t land the role of Rooster (Miles Teller) in “Top Gun: Maverick.” Cruise convinced Powell to accept a smaller part, Hangman, which ended up being career defining. With “The Running Man,” Powell proved he has the chops to be the next major action star.

The rest of the cast carried their weight too, especially Michael Cera as Elton Parrakis, a revolutionary who helps Ben along the way. Cera was fantastic in his limited screentime. This felt like a more serious role for him (at least character motivation-wise), but Elton still boasts the obligatory quirkiness of a Cera character.

My favorite scene shows Elton rigging an electric floor in his house and spraying it with a water gun, which electrocutes intruding soldiers from The Network. It’s an epic sequence that features a needle drop of “Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)” by The Rolling Stones — a song that immediately made me lean forward in my seat.

Josh Brolin plays Dan Killian, The Network’s chief executive. While it’s great to watch Brolin’s acting prowess, I was disappointed by the portrayal. Brolin did what he could, but the script made Dan a stereotypical head-honcho villain; he’s just a cutout of someone corrupted by power.

The only glaring issue with “The Running Man” is its convoluted ending, which overshadowed the otherwise mature worldbuilding throughout the film.

After breaking into wealthy civilian Amelia Williams’ (Emilia Jones) car and taking her hostage, The Network cooperates with Ben — who pretends to have an explosive — allowing him and Amelia to board a plane.

The plane sequence tries to do too much. Dan calls in, says he knows the explosive is fake and offers Ben his own show. A deepfake from The Network makes Ben believe his family was murdered. And it’s revealed that Evan McCone (Lee Pace), the main hunter, was in Ben’s position when he participated in the game and accepted Dan’s offer.

The multitude of twists and turns feel painfully forced, and the audience doesn’t have proper time to digest all the information. The entire final act felt like Wright tried to mimic the tension of classic 1990s revelations, like in “Se7en” or “Primal Fear,” but it didn’t work with the film’s campier tone.

However, I applaud “The Running Man” for poignantly critiquing society, especially as an action flick. It’s unclear when the movie takes place, but the novel is coincidentally set in 2025.

The Network consistently uses deepfakes to paint participants in a negative light, which parallels current fears of artificial intelligence. The film also highlights the dangers of media bias with The Network’s authoritative influence, reflecting how partisan news can lead to political division.

Also, “The Running Man” comments on wealth inequality, with rich people, like Amelia, being oblivious to The Network’s corruption, and more impoverished people rooting for Ben with the slogan “Richards Lives.” The subtle themes aren’t the centerpiece of the movie, but they’re effective nonetheless.

“The Running Man” is facing backlash for not being as stylish as other Wright films, and while true, it’s an unfair critique of the project itself. Just because it doesn’t feel overtly like a Wright movie doesn’t take away from its execution.

This is the second script that Wright has co-written with Michael Bacall — both being adapted screenplays — and apart from Bacall’s first collaboration (“Scott Pilgrim vs. the World”), Wright’s creativity thrives off original screenplays.

With “The Running Man” being a King adaptation, I can see it ranking low among Wright’s filmography, which contains stylistic masterpieces like “Shaun of the Dead” and “Baby Driver,” but don’t let that detract you from watching a well-made film.

While the ending falls flat, Wright directing an action movie starring an energetic Powell is the perfect recipe for a fun time.

Published on November 19, 2025 at 11:18 pm