The Running Man
A desperate father enters a lethal global game show where corporate power turns his fight for survival into a nationwide manhunt.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Breakneck
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Brutal
- frantic
- sardonic
- bleak
- action movie night
- edgar wright marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film fast-paced, watchable, and buoyed by Edgar Wright's direction and Glen Powell's performance, while considering its dystopian ideas familiar and its conclusion underwhelming.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The game show recruits hunters, pays civilians to report Richards, and converts his persecution into mass entertainment.
Ben Richards enters the lethal contest because his family cannot afford essential medication for their daughter.
Stephen King praised the adaptation for capturing the book's concept of Richards being hunted throughout the real world.
Critics specifically described the film as retro-futurist and steampunky while noting its confident direction and garish dystopian presentation.
Films like The Running Man, and why
The Hunger Games
shares dystopian science fiction, televised survival spectacle, media manipulation, and authoritarian social control
RoboCop
shares near-future paranoia, corporate power, hunted protagonists, and propulsive action-thriller pacing
They Live
shares satirical dystopia, public spectacle, social inequality, and bleakly comic political criticism
The Running Man
shares relentless pursuit, survival-game mechanics, and high-arousal science fiction action
Movie Details
- Director
- Edgar Wright
- Release Date
- 2025-11-11
- Runtime
- 133 min
- Rating
- 6.7 / 10 (2012)
Cast
- Glen Powell
- Colman Domingo
- Lee Pace
- Josh Brolin
- William H. Macy
- Michael Cera
- Emilia Jones
- Daniel Ezra
- Jayme Lawson
- Sean Hayes
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Philo, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, FlixFling, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Running Man about?
- A desperate father enters a lethal global game show where corporate power turns his fight for survival into a nationwide manhunt.
- What is The Running Man like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Running Man as breakneck, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Running Man violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Running Man as brutal.
- What did critics think of The Running Man?
- Critics broadly found the film fast-paced, watchable, and buoyed by Edgar Wright's direction and Glen Powell's performance, while considering its dystopian ideas familiar and its conclusion underwhelming.
- Which films are like The Running Man?
- Films with a similar feel include The Hunger Games, RoboCop, They Live, and The Running Man.
- How long is The Running Man?
- The Running Man runs 133 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Running Man?
- In United States, The Running Man streams on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, MGM+ Amazon Channel, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Philo, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, MGM Plus, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
