Quick Summary
Paramount has released the first trailer for its sci-fi movie remake, The Running Man.
Starring Glen Powell in the role made famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger, it has a tint of John Wick about it – but retains a distinct sense of dark humour.
Arnold Schwarzenegger was no stranger to 80s sci-fi action movies, having starred in both The Terminator and The Predator in the decade. He would also follow them up with Total Recall in 1990 and, of course, T2. However, there was another sci-fi flick released in 1987 that brings even more of a smile every time it's mentioned.
Directed by Starsky from Starsky & Hutch (no, really – go look it up), The Running Man was based on the novel by Stephen King (writing under the name Richard Bachman at the time), and it was as cheesy as it was adrenaline-fuelled.
But even today, it is a satirical swipe at the culture of reality TV and the lengths at which producers are willing to go to get viewers. Battle Royale, The Hunger Games and various other stories in books, films and games have followed similar tropes, and now we're about to get another.
Yep, 38 years later, Paramount Pictures is set to release a remake of The Running Man for an all-new audience, and if the first trailer is anything to go by, it could do for today's cinema goers what the original did for us back in the late 80s.
What is The Running Man (2025)?
The all-new version of The Running Man sees Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead, Baby Driver) in the director's chair. He also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Bacall (21 Jump Street).
It's more based on King's novel than the Arnie movie, but the trailer shows that there's still an inherent sense of humour that punctuates the dark themes.
Basically, Ben Richards (Glen Powell) signs up to be the latest contestant on The Running Man – a reality TV show that rewards its participants if they manage to stay alive for 30 days while being hunted by trained killers.
Where it differs from the original is that the entire planet is the playing field and the public can be rewarded for information on his wearabouts.
It's also set more in the here and now, and there are strong undertones of the John Wick films, for me.
It certainly looks like great fun, anyway.
The Running Man will be available in cinemas on 7 November and, considering other movie releases in recent times, could arrive onto the Paramount+ streaming service soon after.
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