The Running Man (2025) Parent Guide

In the not-so-distant future, a dystopic America has crumbled into an oligarchic authoritarian hellscape, where the wealthy live in extravagant luxury and the poor die in squalor. For Ben Richards (Glen Powell), a death in squalor seems imminent: His infant daughter is dying of the flu. Neither Ben nor his wife, Sheila (Jayme Lawson) can afford any of the basic treatments which could save her life, and after Ben was accused of slipping secrets to his union and labeled an agitator, he’s utterly unemployable. That leaves the family subsisting on Sheila’s salary and tips at the club, which barely cover food and rent.

In desperation, Ben makes a deal with the devil – or, at least, producer Dan Killian (Josh Brolin). Killian works for the Network, the only broadcasting game in town with a complete media monopoly, and he’s willing to get Ben on his show: The Running Man. Ben knows the deal and he knows the odds are slim. He’ll have to evade the Network’s armed hunters and watchful viewers of the show (who can pick up a big cash prize for reporting, detaining, or killing him), all while making regular video check-ins. If he can survive a day, the prize money will save his daughter’s life. If he can survive for thirty days (and no one ever has), he’ll win a billion dollars. Either way, the odds that he’ll see his daughter live to grow up are not good.

This has been a really good year for Stephen King adaptations. Between The Running Man and The Long Walk, we’ve run the gamut of grisly death-for-entertainment stories. Unlike the more grounded isolation of The Long Walk, which keeps you in front of the camera and never behind it, The Running Man is all about the show. The production, the lying, the scheming, the staggering disregard for human life in the endless pursuit of higher ratings. It does a fantastic job, too.

Obviously, The Running Man is a movie about murder for funsies, so there are going to be some issues watching with the kids. Turns out, murder for fun is a bloody business, and there’s plenty of gore afoot. There’s also a good deal of swearing (in largely understandable circumstances, to be fair), a few instances of sexually suggestive material, and a little bit of substance use. There are, however, hints of restraint. This isn’t nearly as gruesome as it could have been - and compared to The Long Walk and its nearly 300 f-bombs, The Running Man looks very prim and proper.

The movie is, succinctly, a blast. Good casting, great pacing, fun editing, and a considerably stronger grasp on the plot of Stephen King’s original than the 1987 Schwarzenegger adaptation make this one of the better action movies of the year. Science fiction dystopia may be less fictional than we’d prefer, but The Running Man manages to have fun with it regardless.

About author

Keith Hawkes

Keith Hawkes graduated from Mount Royal University, Calgary, Canada with a degree in English and History. His interests are movies, American literature, science fiction, almost every kind of music, and museums. He enjoys criticizing films for fun - although he's okay with being paid for it.