The Running Man is a story about a dystopian society that takes place in the future, but a future that clearly isn’t far in the future enough to feel comfortable. Directed by Edgar Wright and starring Glen Powell, it’s the kind of story that will resonate with marginalized groups and any who have been underdogs.
Recently, Senior Writer Elijah Isaiah Johnson spoke with two of the stars from the film, Jayme Lawson and Daniel Ezra, as well as cinematographer Chung-Hoon Chung.
Lawson noted that the book, which the film is based on, was written by legendary author Stephen King in 1982 and is actually set in 2025. The fact that the in-story date matches the current year we’re living in and feels a little too prescient for comfort was not lost on the cast and crew.
“The book that was written in the 80s was set for now, right? And that’s like, ‘Oh god, okay.’ And then you read it and you see how there’s so many things, from the use of AI, from the use of distorting the truth, people’s truths, truths in the realities as a form of propaganda that the network uses to justify their show, right?” Lawson said. “So, I’m reading all of these things and then I also see how Edgar takes care of Sheila in this movie, which is a bit different from how she’s written in the book. And yeah, I was sold into it. Because I think there are a lot of people, but especially a lot of women, who can resonate with what it is to work very, very hard, to do the best that you can to take care and provide for your family, and to be demonized and your experience be snuffed out from what it actually is.”
Ezra echoed Lawson’s sentiments, also mentioning the year that the story is set in. For Ezra, The Running Man is a classic underdog story, and he spoke about how it resonated with him personally.
“When I read the book, the scary thing about it is, the book’s set in 2025. And so, I thought that was perfect. And then I I love an underdog story, as so many other people do. And this is very much the ultimate David and Goliath underdog story. It’s an ode to the idea of the working class doing whatever they can to protect themselves and their family and trying to make the most out of what they’ve been given. And I really related to that. I really connected with that. And it’s also just really fun. It’s really fun. It’s really funny,” Ezra said.
South Korean cinematographer Chung-Hoon Chung, is a filmmaking veteran, whose credits include the classic Korean film Old Boy, as well as The Handmaiden, Obi-Wan Kenobi and Wonka. Chung spoke about working with director Edgar Wright to ensure that the numerous action sequences in The Running Man served the character development and overall story. Chung noted that while filmmaking in Korea and the United States are similar, Korean filmmakers tend to put an even greater emphasis on story, which is the approach they took with this film.
“I think it’s mostly [the] same but it’s just [a] couple percentage different. Maybe in Asia, we more care about story even [more] than the action. So yeah, it’s not just punch together and then not kicking together, [it’s] just, what’s the something more; it’s motivation,” Chung said. “So we more maybe care that it’s a balance of story and action. Maybe that’s something different. For example, Old Boy, the big hallway scene, that’s not just action, because that’s kind of character [development] and then [showing loneliness], so that’s why we made it long shot. So when I shot Running Man, even though it’s all action, Edgar [Wright] pitched kind of same thing. So yeah, when we made action, it’s second unit and then Edgar and me, always we maybe try [so] it’s not just action; it’s a part of a big story in this movie.”
Watch the full interviews below. The Running Man releases in theaters November 14, 2025!
Ron is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of POC Culture. He is a big believer in the power and impact of pop culture and the importance of representation in media.
