REVIEW: Edgar Wright’s Action-Packed ‘The Running Man’ Adaptation Touches On The Media’s Control

© Paramount

The year of Stephen King finally comes to a close with The Running Man after an impressive run with The Life of Chuck, IT: Welcome to Derry, The Monkey, The Institute, and The Long Walk. Stephen King has written a lot of books, meaning that there’s a lot to adapt, but usually, Stephen King adaptations aren’t always considered great back to back, but 2025 might be King’s best year in regard to adaptations. The Running Man first received an adaptation in 1987 directed by Paul Michael Glaser and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. While there has previously been a film already adapted from the book, this is not considered a remake and is yet another adaptation, this time directed by Edgar Wright and starring Glen Powell.

Edgar Wright promised that his adaptation of The Running Man would be more faithful to the book than the previous adaptation, and he kept his promise. The Running Man is a dystopian story that’s set in the near future where The Running Man is the top-rated show on television and is a deadly competition where three contestants, known as Runners, must survive thirty days while being hunted by assassins known as Hunters, while the cash prize grows each day. We follow Ben Richards (Glen Powell), a working-class man who joins The Running Man as a last resort to make money for his sick daughter and his wife, Shiela Richards (Jayme Lawson).

The Running Man is yet another thrilling Stephen King adaptation thanks to Edgar Wright’s style, which isn’t as stylistic as previous movies such as Scott Pilgrim vs the World or Baby Driver but is still extremely fast-paced. He ensures that once Ben Richards is a part of the competition show, the audience is also a part of the ride, constantly keeping up with him as he thwarts and escapes the Hunters. The marketing for the movie made it out to seem more comedic, being in line with what we are used to from Edgar Wright, but The Running Man has a great balance between its drama and comedy, and it’s all thanks to the first twenty minutes that he’s able to achieve this throughout the movie.

As the film starts, we witness Ben Richards at his working-class job that he’s been fired from due to insubordination, attempting to get it back, using his daughter as a way to guilt his boss (well, in reality, to stop him from attacking him). We are then brought into Richard's life, quickly understanding that his little girl is sick and that his wife is doing prostitution work to make ends meet and make any money she can to buy medication for their daughter. Jayme Lawson sells the role completely as Sheila, exposing her vulnerability and in just a small amount of time, connecting emotionally with the audience.

Wright allowing the movie to start instantaneously with a dramatic scene that drops us into their struggling lives sets up the high stakes that are at play in this movie, and despite the comedy that is sprinkled throughout, it never takes away from the film (until its final moments).

The action in The Running Man can get quite brutal, from people getting gunned down to arrows piercing people's skulls to trees. This doesn’t really make its way to the action sequences that involve Ben Richards and usually just involves the B-roll for the show, where it can get quite gruesome, but the action that does involve Richards is kinetic, fast-paced and full of energy thanks to Glen Powell’s performance. His performance as Richards brings a raw intensity to the role that allows the audience to live in the anger of the character who’s playing into the exact game the media has created against working-class people like himself.

The greatest part about The Running Man comes from its antagonists. Josh Brolin portrays producer Dan Killian and delivers a riveting and ruthless performance as he plays the most arrogant antagonist of the year. Killian knows how to make money, and he knows how to control the narrative to ensure that the money keeps flowing. The Running Man highlights how Killian can change the recordings sent to the studio to play a certain narrative against Richards and to create a story that the audience can follow, keeping them engaged even when there's no bloodthirsty action taking place for them. It parallels the real world with how the media will lie about real-world problems to play a certain narrative to either appease world leaders or to divert the public attention elsewhere. It happens all the time, and everyday people are blinded by how the media tell the news. The Running Man portrays this perfectly and the horrors of what effect it can have in the future when AI and deepfaking become more prominent.

While Killian might know how to control the TV, he wouldn't have the ratings he has without Colman Domingo's charismatic performance as Bobby T, who hosts every season of The Running Man, helping push the false narratives and keeping real control of the show. In front of the camera with Ben Richards is McCone (Lee Pace), a hunter who remains ominous and simply just wants to get the job done; all that matters is getting more red on his ledger. There's not much screentime with McCone, which is disappointing, as Pace leaves a lasting effect as the Hunter who deals with the Runners as if killing is as easy as breathing.

It's only at the end, where The Running Man feels like it begins to crumble as it goes from an intense sequence that's fitting of the perfect ending straight into a comedic scene that feels tonally mismatched from the previous twenty minutes of the movie. It's a returning bit that goes on and leads into an ending that, while it was the only answer for the direction Wright went in with the movie, is overall unsatisfying. Despite not having a tight ending, The Running Man is a movie that will hold your attention from start to end — even if the last 10-15 minutes aren't the best. If you're familiar with the book, it's understandable why Wright opted not to recreate the exact same ending due to real-life parallels, but it does leave a sour taste in your mouth after the credits, leaving you in confusion as you wonder if this truly was the best way it could end.

The Running Man might not be Edgar Wright's best film, but it surpasses Last Night in Soho, as it feels more accessible to audiences that are familiar with his movies despite it lacking the complete Edgar Wright package. Wright's direction and editing keep the audience consistently moving with Glen Powell, making the film feel immersive as we follow along with the in-film audience of the show. Powell is quickly becoming Hollywood's next leading man, with each performance he does being better than the last. It smartly tackles timely topics such as the media's constant control of the news and entertainment while also remaining entertaining and fun with its action-packed movie that will have you wanting Powell leading more Edgar Wright films.

Rating: ★★★★☆

The Running Man. © Paramount Pictures

About The Running Man

Premiere Date: November 14, 2025

Writer: Michael Bacall, Edgar Wright

Director: Edgar Wright

Producers: Simon Kinberg, Nira Park, Edgar Wright

Production:  Kinberg Genre, Complete Fiction

Distribution: Paramount Pictures

Cast: Glen Powell, William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, Emilia Jones, Jayme Lawson, Colman Domingo, Josh Brolin

Synopsis: Desperate to save his sick daughter, working-class Ben Richards is convinced by The Running Man’s charming but ruthless producer to enter the deadly competition game as a last resort. But Ben’s defiance, instincts, and grit turn him into an unexpected fan favourite – and a threat to the entire system. As ratings skyrocket, so does the danger, and Ben must outwit not just the Hunters, but a nation addicted to watching him fall.