Glen Powell is grinning when he talks about getting punched in the face. “It’s one of those things,” he laughs. “You sign up for a movie called The Running Man — you’d better show up ready to run, fight, and bleed.”
The Texas-born actor, who’s ridden the twin waves of Top Gun: Maverick and Hit Man to become Hollywood’s most charming leading man, is now stepping into something darker, sweatier, and far more dangerous. Edgar Wright’s The Running Man — due later this year — is a full-throttle, near-future thriller based on Stephen King’s 1982 novel written under the alias Richard Bachman.
Forget the camp of the Arnold Schwarzenegger version. This one’s stripped to the bone.
“Edgar’s version goes back to the book,” Powell says. “It’s not musclemen and one-liners — it’s desperation, it’s dystopia, it’s a working-class guy who’s been pushed to the edge. He’s running for his life — and for his kid’s life — in a world that feels about five minutes away from where we are right now.”
Powell plays Ben Richards, a father who becomes an unwilling contestant on a state-run reality show where fugitives are hunted down for sport. “It’s brutal,” he says. “But it’s also weirdly emotional. He’s not trying to be a hero. He’s just trying to survive. That’s what makes him human.”
To get there, Powell called in a favor from another man who knows how to sprint on screen. “I rang Tom Cruise and said, ‘Teach me how to run in a movie.’ He broke it down like a scientist. Form, breathing, mindset, everything. It was basically a two-hour masterclass in motion.”
Wright, best known for Baby Driver and Shaun of the Dead, has built a reputation for precision. “He’s obsessive,” Powell says, grinning. “Every shot is designed like music. The camera moves to a rhythm. He storyboards the film like a symphony. You’re not just running — you’re running in tempo.”
But The Running Man isn’t just action. Beneath the high-octane chase sequences lies something more chilling: a social satire about media, spectacle, and the price of distraction. “When Stephen King wrote the book, it was sci-fi,” Powell says. “Now it feels like a documentary. We live in this world where pain equals ratings, outrage equals currency. Edgar’s movie holds up a mirror and dares you to look.”
Filming wasn’t glamorous. The production shot in Bulgaria, doubling for a decaying future America. “We had this towel scene — I’m half-naked, supposed to look like I’m sweating in the heat,” Powell recalls. “In reality, it was two degrees and snowing. My teeth were chattering between takes. Edgar just yelled, ‘Think summer!’”
Powell did most of his own stunts, including several bone-rattling collisions. “We wanted the audience to feel it,” he says. “You can tell when it’s CGI. I wanted people to see it’s me — taking the hits, going over the wall, getting smashed. It’s the only way the story feels real.”
Still, amid the chaos, The Running Man carries a heartbeat of hope. “It’s about rebellion,” Powell says. “About ordinary people pushing back against a system that’s rigged to crush them. Ben Richards becomes a symbol. He starts as one man trying to save his daughter — and ends up representing everyone who’s been silenced.”
Powell pauses for a beat, then smiles. “Honestly, this one’s special. It’s physical, it’s political, it’s emotional. It’s everything I love about movies — and everything I love about stories that fight back.”
He leans back and adds, almost as an afterthought: “And yeah — I did get punched in the face. But that’s the job. You’ve got to earn it.”
Thanks to our friends at Paramount Pictures and Superdream we have 5 in-season double passes to give away to The Running Man. To be in the running to win one of 5 in-season double passes, follow ‘timeoff’ on instagram at “timeoffmagazine” then send an email
tomprizes@timeoffmedia.com with “The Running Man” in the subject line and include your postal address. Winners will be notified by return email. QLD addresses only. One entry per person. Comp closes November 13.
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