The Running Man trailer looks fantastic but read the book

I read The Running Man by Richard Bachman (aka Stephen King) in the mid-80s and it was a great read. Judging by the new trailer, the new Edgar Wright film will be sticking a lot closer to the book than the previous Schwarzenegger film. You should read the original story first, it is short, exciting, and a lot of fun.

The book was set in the distant futuristic year of 2025. Pollution is toxic, the USA is run by a dictator who wants to keep most people poor and lacking health care. The plebs in their slums are glued to violence and sex on their screens.

So, King was pretty spot on back in 1983.

The Running Man is the top rated TV show and no one has ever survived to win it. Essentially, one person is hunted by the entire world. All they have to do is live for 30 days.

The Schwarzenegger-sized elephant in the room

There is already a Running Man film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger that came out in 1987. It was peak Arnie and a lot fun, but in it the Running Man is fighting people in a load of arenas. Cue Arnie grunting and saying “I’ll be back”.

It was stylised, odd, fun, and very 80s. Weirdly, the film was set in the far off year of 2017 rather than the book’s 2025. But it wasn’t like the novel where the protagonist is just trying to get medicine for his daughter and is being hunted by the whole world. The ending was also drastically different. The new film might well do the ending justice, it will be interesting to see. Don’t worry, no spoilers here.

Give The Running Man book a try

As I mentioned earlier, it has been 40 years since I read The Running Man novel. I remember it being short, around 70k words, and it being exciting. I also remember the anger fuelled protagonist, some of the other games people watched on TV, and the ending. Which is pretty impressive given how long ago it was.

I have just downloaded the book again on my Kindle and can’t wait to read it. It is a great premise and a painfully accurate look at what scumbags we humans are.

You can check out the book here.

The Trailer is here!

I’m obviously writing all this because The Running Man trailer has just dropped and it looks awesome. Edgar Wright hasn’t made a bad movie and this looks like a lot of fun. Glen Powell is also a great choice for the main guy.

Without further blathering, here is the trailer. Now go read the book.

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