Before Glen Powell steps into the arena this fall, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cult classic The Running Man is getting a second wind — this time on Netflix. Beginning September 1, the 1987 dystopian action film joins the streamer’s lineup, giving fans a chance to revisit (or finally discover) one of the most bizarre and biting sci-fi thrillers of Schwarzenegger’s career.
Released at the height of the Austrian Oak’s ’80s box office dominance, The Running Man came with the promise of another futuristic thrill ride starring one of the biggest action heroes on the planet. Instead, it turned into something stranger. Directed by Paul Michael Glaser (Starsky & Hutch), the film swerved hard away from Stephen King’s original novel (published under his pseudonym Richard Bachman) and gave audiences a neon-splattered mashup of bloodsport spectacle and Reagan-era satire.
What Is ‘The Running Man’ About?
In Glaser’s version, Schwarzenegger plays Ben Richards, a police officer framed for a massacre and sentenced to death. His “execution” is staged in the form of a televised bloodbath, where he’s hunted by flamboyant “stalkers” across a sprawling game zone in front of millions of gleeful viewers. Think American Gladiators if it was produced by the Ministry of Propaganda.
The cast is stacked with faces you’ll say “oh it’s that guy” to: Jesse Ventura as a retired stalker turned commentator, Jim Brown as “Fireball,” and Erland Van Lidth as the opera-singing Dynamo. Throw in Schwarzenegger’s one-liners (“He had to split”) and a heavy dose of synths, and you’ve got a dystopia that’s equal parts satire and cheese.
At the time, the film didn’t land cleanly. With a $27 million budget and a worldwide gross of just $38 million, it barely limped into profitability. Critics weren’t kind either — Rotten Tomatoes still pegs it at 67% today — and it was overshadowed in the same year by Predator, which gave Schwarzenegger one of his biggest hits.
But decades later, The Running Man feels a lot smarter than it got credit for. The idea of state-run media spinning lies for a bloodthirsty public? Check. Reality television as gladiatorial punishment? Check. The movie may be goofy in its execution, but in hindsight it looks like accidental prophecy. With Powell suiting up for Edgar Wright’s remake — one that promises to be closer to King’s much darker source material — interest in Schwarzenegger’s original is spiking again.
Whether you watch it for the satire, the absurd villains, or just Arnold in a yellow spandex jumpsuit, Netflix subscribers can dive back into The Running Man starting September 1.
The Running Man
- Release Date
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November 13, 1987
- Runtime
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101 minutes
- Director
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Paul Michael Glaser
