In the year 2025, the best men don’t run for president, they run for their lives. . . .
After years of wanting to make a book-accurate adaptation of The Running Man, Paramount Pictures has today debuted the first official trailer for Edgar Wright‘s (Shaun of The Dead, Last Night in Soho) take on Stephen King’s dystopian action dark satirical novel in which dystopian television has never looked so deliriously savage.
The trailer reveals a neon-drenched near-future where America’s highest-rated show is a state-sanctioned blood sport. Contestants, dubbed Runners, have just 30 days to survive an onslaught of professional assassins while every second is beamed to millions of ravenous viewers.
At the centre of the carnage is Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) as working-class hero Ben Richards. Desperate to save his sick daughter, Richards reluctantly signs on to the deadly spectacle under the gaze of the show’s charming but merciless producer, Dan Killian (Josh Brolin). But what starts as an act of sacrifice quickly morphs into an all-out rebellion, as Ben’s iron-willed defiance transforms him into an unexpected folk hero — and a ratings goldmine.
Wright, who directs and co-wrote the script with longtime collaborator Michael Bacall (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), promises a take truer to King’s 1982 novel than the cult Schwarzenegger version. The trailer flaunts a slick, satirical edge, oozing with Wright’s signature kinetic style.
Joining Powell and Brolin is a stellar ensemble cast: William H. Macy, Lee Pace, Emilia Jones, Michael Cera, Daniel Ezra, Jayme Lawson, and Colman Domingo, all rounding out this blood-soaked, nitro circus.
Wright teams up with producers Simon Kinberg, Nira Park, and himself, whilst the film is exec produced by George Linder, James Biddle, Rachael Prior, Audrey Chon, Pete Chiappetta, Anthony Tittanegro, and Andrew Lary.
The Running Man is set to hit cinemas on November 7, 2025, courtesy of Paramount Pictures.
