Another Marvel Villain Star Joins Stephen King’s Running Man Remake
Guardians of the Galaxy bad guy Lee Pace has just joined the star-studded cast of the highly anticipated remake of Stephen King’s The Running Man per The Hollywood Reporter. The remake will not only include Pace, who played the villain Ronan, but also veteran actor Josh Brolin, who gained additional notoriety for playing the supervillain Thanos in the 2014 film. The actors will join Glen Powell and Katy O’Brian in the production, which is slated to begin filming in London at the beginning of 2025.
Another Stephen King Adaptation
The Running Man is a dystopian novel published under one of Stephen King’s pseudonyms in 1982. Writing as “Richard Bachman,” King took readers on a journey into a horrific future where the top-rated television program was centered around contestants trying to outlast a group of skilled hitmen who try to gun them down. In 1987, the novel was adapted for theater screens and was a modest box office success.
While The Running Man remake boasts of a big cast, the original film had some stars in its own right. The protagonist was played by none other than Arnold Schwarzenegger, arguably in his peak as an action star. He co-starred along with Maria Conchita Alonzo, Yaphet Kotto, and Richard Dawson, the longtime host of the game show Family Feud.
Where Pace And Brolin Fit In
In The Running Man remake, the part once played by Arnold Schwarzenegger is slated for Glen Powell. Powell will play Ben Richards, a man desperate to win promised cash from the violent game show so that he can have the needed funds to get medical treatment for his sick daughter. As the game rules state, the longer a contestant survives, the more money he or she is able to generate.
However, the evil producer of The Running Man game (played by Josh Brolin in the remake) is unaware that Powell will stop at nothing to survive and is committed to becoming an impossible target for the hitmen to eliminate. The squad of killers is where Lee Pace comes in, as he portrays the chief hunter who tracks down the players and exterminates them one by one.
Prior to committing to The Running Man remake, Lee Pace played Ronan the Accuser in both the 2014 film Guardians of the Galaxy and the 2019 superhero movie Captain Marvel. His other credits include the AMC drama Halt and Catch Fire and the current AppleTV science fiction series Foundation.
Arrives In Theaters Next Year
The upcoming production will see director Edgar Wright at the helm. The four-time BAFTA Award nominee is best known for directing the Three Flavours Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz, and The World’s End), starring Simon Pegg. In addition to directing The Running Man remake, Wright shares screenwriting credits with Michael Bacall.
Should the announced production schedule be kept, Paramount is committed to releasing The Running Man remake on November 21, 2025. It will also co-star Michael Cera, William H. Macy, Karl Glusman, Jayme Lawson, and Daniel Ezra. The film was produced by Simon Kinberg, Nira Park, and Edgar Wright.
Sources: The Hollywood Reporter
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