‘Wildly entertaining’ sci-fi film classic streaming on Netflix ahead of remake release

Before Glen Powell takes up the mantle of Ben Richards in the upcoming 2025 remake of The Running Man, the original 1987 cult classic has just dropped on Netflix — and fans are revisiting it with renewed interest.

Directed by Paul Michael Glaser and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger at the height of his action-hero fame, The Running Man has long been one of the more gloriously bonkers entries in the dystopian sci-fi canon.

Set in a near-future America ruled by a totalitarian state, the film follows Richards, a framed police officer forced to participate in a deadly televised game show where criminals are hunted down for public entertainment.

It’s a neon-lit, blood-spattered vision of the future — part social satire, part musclebound spectacle — and as viewers rediscover it, nostalgia is running high.

Rotten Tomatoes reviewer Ray C called it ‘wildly entertaining and full of 80s cheese’, adding: ‘The Running Man sees Arnold Schwarzenegger at peak action hero status, one liners and everything. I also loved Richard Dawson as the sadistic game show host antagonist.’

For others, the film’s mix of satire and excess still hits hard. Fifty T wrote: ‘Arnold, Deepfakes, and “It’s Showtime”: I finally caught The Running Man after years of meaning to watch it… partly because the Glen Powell remake drops next week and I’ve got tickets. This is pure 80s Arnold at his most entertainingly excessive, and I loved it more than expected.’

Meanwhile, Paul S praised both its message and mayhem: ‘It’s not Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best performance, and the corny one-liners definitely didn’t help, but this movie was amazing!

‘It showed a beautiful dystopian atmosphere, and it highlighted the cost and importance of defying tyranny… The concept is both captivating and terrifying, and it’s so much fun to watch from start to finish.’

That mix of absurdity and allegory is exactly what’s made The Running Man ripe for reinvention.

The 2025 remake – directed by Alex Garland (Ex Machina) – promises a sharper, more faithful adaptation of Stephen King’s original 1982 novel, written under his pseudonym Richard Bachman.

This time, the story returns to its darker roots. Our hero is still Ben Richards, now played by Glen Powell, a righteous but angry everyman continually fired from his construction and mining jobs for standing up to corrupt bosses.

When his young daughter falls ill and he can’t afford her medication, he takes a desperate gamble and signs up for Running Man, a high-stakes reality game where contestants must survive 30 days on the run for a $1 billion prize.

The twist? If they’re caught by the show’s sadistic ‘Hunters,’ they’re executed live on air.

Early buzz suggests Powell’s version is ‘smart, fast-paced, and action-packed,’ balancing visceral chase sequences with sharp political commentary.

Whether you’re revisiting Schwarzenegger’s one-liners or preparing for Powell’s more grounded rebellion, The Running Man remains a mirror of our obsession with spectacle and the illusion of equality in a system that still creates extreme poverty and ultra-wealth.

The Running Man (1987) is now streaming on Netflix and the 2025 remake, starring Glen Powell, hits cinemas next week.

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