TravelingbeebryantRN & Flicks_withNick

The latest movie from Edgar Wright is the 2025 Stephen King adaptation The Running Man, which follows desperate everyman Ben Richards (Glen Powell) as he gambles his life by entering a brutal, televised death-match for the chance to win a billion dollars. Up against a corrupt media empire that controls the game – and the narrative — Richards isn’t just fighting for survival, but trying to expose the dark truth the network has buried.

The Running Man is, overall, an enjoyable popcorn film — slick, propulsive, and fun, even if not everything clicks. The first two acts land especially well: Wright builds a vivid dystopian world defined by a massive divide between rich and poor, and the set pieces are incredibly staged. When the movie leans into spectacle and social satire, it really works.

Where things falter is in the third act. Once Emilia Jones the actress from CODA is introduced, the pacing suddenly shifts and the narrative loses some of the momentum it had been steadily building. It doesn’t ruin the movie, but it dulls the urgency and edge that the opening two-thirds delivered with confidence.

I also struggled with Glen Powell in this role. Other than Timothée Chalamet, he might be one of the few current actors who can open a movie on star power alone, but he feels miscast here. Powell usually excels as the easy-going, charismatic cowboy type, and this part called for someone with more grit and barely controlled rage. The character spends most of the film angry, and Powell’s natural charm runs counter to that energy.

The motivation that gets Richards into the Running Man competition also feels a bit thin from a writing standpoint — but once he enters the game, the film clicks into an exhilarating rhythm. And without a doubt, the strongest scenes belong to Colman Domingo. He had big shoes to fill playing the game show host, that was previously played by Richard Dawson. Every time he’s on screen, the movie sharpens: more intensity, more presence, more charisma. He feels like he’s in the exact version of the story the whole film was reaching for.

The Running Man isn’t perfect — the ending loses steam and the casting doesn’t always match the tone – but it’s undeniably entertaining. It’s stylish, fast, and occasionally brilliant, and even with its flaws, it delivers a good time. If you’re in the mood for high-concept sci-fi action and don’t mind forgiving a wobbly third act, this one is a blast with popcorn and a big screen.

Flicks_withNick rating 2.9 / 5.

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