The Running Man reboot is bringing back key aspects of Stephen King's novel to turn it into "the deadliest game of hide and seek"

The Running Man
(Image credit: Tri-Star Pictures)

The upcoming reboot of The Running Man won't be a straight remake of 1987's classic movie. Instead, director Edgar Wright has shared his plans to go back to Stephen King's original novel for inspiration.

Originally published under his pen name Richard Bachman in 1986, the novel follows Ben Richards as he takes part in a reality show called The Running Man. Contestants win money by evading the team of hitmen who have been set to murder them.

Speaking to Empire magazine, Wright says his plan isn't to confine the action to just 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."

The new version stars Glen Powell in the lead role alongside a pretty star-studded cast. Colman Domingo plays the gameshow host while Katy O'Brian, Josh Brolin, Lee Pace, Michael Cera, and William H. Macy all also star.

The movie is scheduled to be released on November 7, 2025. For more, check out our guide to upcoming movies and 2025 movie release dates.

Fay Watson
Deputy Entertainment Editor

I’m the Deputy Entertainment Editor here at GamesRadar+, covering TV and film for the Total Film and SFX sections online. I previously worked as a Senior Showbiz Reporter and SEO TV reporter at Express Online for three years. I've also written for The Resident magazines and Amateur Photographer, before specializing in entertainment.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.

Read more
Stephen King in It Chapter 2
Stephen King is writing Mike Flanagan's adaptation of The Dark Tower: "To say too much feels like a jinx"
Jonathan Bailey and Scarlett Johansson in Jurassic World Rebirth
Jurassic World Rebirth's writer says the new movie will include a novel scene they had to cut from the 1993 original
Welcome to Derry still
Welcome to Derry director reveals three-season plan for the upcoming prequel series based on Stephen King's It
The House of the Dead first look 'Test Subjects'
Resident Evil director offers update on his horror movie adaptation of Until Dawn-sounding video game from over 20 years ago: "It's going to be very, very scary"
Danny Huston in 30 Days of Night
The Hunger Games director to follow up Stephen King adaptation with Netflix series based on "30 Days of Night meets The Last of Us" horror podcast
Theo James in The Monkey
Longlegs director says he's going to the "extremes," says we can expect "explosive gore" with new Stephen King adaptation: "There’s a lot of mess"
Latest in Thriller Movies
The Running Man
The Running Man reboot is bringing back key aspects of Stephen King's novel to turn it into "the deadliest game of hide and seek"
The Iron Mask
The 32 greatest swashbuckler movies ever made
Black Bag
This new spy thriller starring Michael Fassbender earns near-perfect Rotten Tomatoes score with glowing first reviews
Claire Danes as Juliet and Miriam Margolyes as Nurse in the movie Romeo + Juliet.
The 33 greatest movies based on Shakespeare
Bloodsport
The 32 greatest '80s action movies
The Bridges of Madison County
The 32 most heartbreaking movie moments
Latest in News
The Running Man
The Running Man reboot is bringing back key aspects of Stephen King's novel to turn it into "the deadliest game of hide and seek"
Balatro Joker card
After stepping away from Balatro for 3 months, the developer only resumed work "because I was bored but the internet was out so I couldn't play Rocket League"
Shots of Arydia: The Paths We Dare Tread in play
RPG board game designer's revelation was searching for a D&D quick start guide to find "You needed to pull together lots of different pieces in order to play"
Indy in Ben Leonberg's haunted house horror Good Boy
Good Boy, a new scary movie told from a dog's POV, is being called "one of the best horror films of the year"
Doctor Doom in Marvel Comics
The Russo brothers say Avengers: Doomsday and Secret Wars will draw inspiration from multiple comics – which explains how Doctor Doom might fit into the story
Daredevil: Born Again
Marvel fans think that Daredevil: Born Again episode 3 just referenced Spider-Man's Miles Morales – but a key detail might have already debunked the theory