Josh Brolin Joins Glen Powell in ‘The Running Man’

Powell, Katy O’Brian and Daniel Ezra are all aboard the fresh adaptation of the Stephen King story, written back in his Richard Bachman pseudonym days.

Josh Brolin stars in 'Brothers'.

Preview:

Josh Brolin is the latest recruit for the new version of ‘The Running Man.’
Glen Powell is starring alongside Katy O’Brian and Daniel Ezra.
Edgar Wright co-wrote and will direct the adaptation.

Last month, word arrived that Josh Brolin had been offered one of the lead roles in DC Studios and HBO’s new ‘Green Lantern’–based series ‘Lanterns.’

He’s since passed (Kyle Chandler is taking the ‘Lanterns’ part as Hal Jordan instead), and now it appears we know one reason why Brolin decided not to take the role –– he’s landed a major part in Edgar Wright’s adaptation of Stephen King story ‘The Running Man.’

The Running Man

"It is the year 2019. "The Running Man" is a deadly game no one has ever survived. But Schwarzenegger has yet to play."

R1 hr 41 minNov 13th, 1987

Showtimes & Tickets

Watch The Running Man Online

The dystopian tale has already seen screens before –– it was adapted into a 1987 action movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger (then at the height of his movie stardom), which, while it’s far from excellent, has long developed a cult following.

Wright is bringing his own spin to it, having co-written the script with his ‘Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World’ collaborator Michael Bacall, and landed Glen Powell to star alongside ‘Love Lies Bleeding’s Katy O’Brian, ‘All American’s Daniel Ezra and Karl Glusman, who was most recently seen in ‘Civil War.’

And Brolin is not the only new recruit, as The Hollywood Reporter has learned that ‘Foundation’s Lee Pace is also aboard.

What’s the story of ‘The Running Man’?

Arnold Schwarzenegger as Captain Benjamin "Ben" Richards in 'The Running Man.'

‘Running Man,’ which King published in 1982 under the pseudonym Richard Bachman, was set in 2025 in an America under a totalitarian regime that uses violent game shows to placate the disenfranchised masses.

The story centered on one desperate man, needing money for his gravely sick daughter, who joins the most popular show, ‘The Running Man,’ in which teams of killers hunt down contestants. The longer that a contestant survives, the more money that person makes. But as the game show’s producers and killers will find out, our conflicted hero will break all the rules and expose the show’s dark secrets.

Powell is playing the main character, while O’Brian would be one of the other contestants.

Ezra and Glusman’s roles have yet to be revealed, but Brolin, making an appearance at the New York Comic-Con, announced he’ll be playing the villain in the movie, and Deadline has heard that means the antagonist behind the whole show.

What else does Josh Brolin have lined up?

(L to R) Moke (Josh Brolin) and Jady (Peter Dinklage) in 'Brothers'. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Prime © Amazon Content Services LLC.

The actor, who may still be best known for switching between the likes of the Coen brothers’ ‘No Country for Old Men’ and roles in giant movies such as Thanos in the last two ‘Avengers’ movies for Marvel, is on Prime Video playing opposite Peter Dinklage in mismatched sibling comedy drama ‘Brothers.’

He’ll next be seen in ‘Weapons,’ writer-director Zach Cregger’s follow-up to horror movie ‘Barbarian’ and Rian Johnson’s third Benoit Blanc detective tale ‘Wake Up, Dead Man,’ due to arrive via Netflix in 2025.

When will ‘The Running Man’ be in theaters?

Given the original story’s setting, it’s somewhat fitting that Paramount has scheduled the movie for theatrical release on November 21st, 2025.

Josh Brolin as Gurney Halleck in Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures’ action adventure 'Dune: Part Two,' a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo Credit: Niko Tavernise. Copyright: © 2023 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. All Rights Reserved.