Hollywood loves a story about a man on the run. There's the fugitive, North by Northwest,

and, all right, the running man. The Stephen King novel was made into an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie

in the 1980s, but now it's back. Directed by Edgar Wright, the new dystopian thriller stars the ubiquitous Glenn Powell as a man so desperate for money to care for his family that he volunteers to run for his life from professionals and amateurs both to try to win a huge cash prize.

I'm Linda Holmes, and today we're talking about The Running Man on

Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR. Joining me today is Ronald Young Jr. He's the host of the film

and television review podcast, leaving the theater. Hello, Ronald. Hello, Linda. And also with us

is freelance music and culture journalist Rihanna Cruz. Hi, Rihanna. Howdy, Linda? And also with us is freelance music and culture journalist.

Rihanna Cruz.

Hi, Rihanna.

Howdy, Linda?

All right, so the Running Man is based on a 1982 Stephen King novel, one of a number of early works he originally released under the pen name Richard Bachman.

The story is set in a grim future of authoritarian rule and violent

exploitative entertainment. A man named Ben Richards, played here by Glenn Powell, is one of many

people living in poverty and despair. Desperate to take care of his wife and young daughter,

he volunteers for a TV game show called The Running Man. The show is

operated by an all-powerful corporation called The Network, and it's spearheaded by an executive

named Dan Killian, played by Josh Brolin. It sends Richards out into the world to try to survive

for 30 days while he's hunted by a group of highly skilled

assassins and by his fellow citizens. They can earn money for turning him in or even killing him

themselves. But if Ben can survive for a month, he'll win unbelievable riches, literally

unbelievable, given that no contestant has ever made it. Unlike the 1987 adaptation starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the hero and Richard Dawson as the villain, this film sticks pretty close to King's original story, and director Edgar Wright brings in a cast that also includes Lee Pace, Coleman Domingo, William H. Macy, and Michael Sarah to support Powell's Central Performance.

The Running Man is in theaters.

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