Arnold Schwarzenegger Slams “Stupid” Remake of His Beloved Action Movie Classic

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A famous Hollywood actor has criticized the recent remake of one of his classic action films. Several of his older movies have been remade over the years, and the latest one came out this year.

Arnold Schwarzenegger recently attended a screening of The Running Man, starring Glen Powell, and discussed one of his own films that was later remade. Thankfully, he wasn’t criticizing the new version of The Running Man itself, but the 2012 remake of Total Recall, which stars Colin Farrell as a man questioning whether his memories are real or implanted dreams.

At a recent screening Arnold Schwarzenegger organized for veterans in Los Angeles, the actor shared his thoughts on remakes of his classic films. He specifically called the decision to remake Total Recall “stupid.”

We created the film The Running Man in 1987. It came out during a fantastic period for action movies – the late eighties and early nineties saw some of the best ones ever made.

I didn’t understand the decision to remake Total Recall, and I thought it was a mistake. I really questioned why they would even bother.

Schwarzenegger Responds to Edgar Wright’s ‘The Running Man’ Remake

The 1990 film Total Recall was based on a Philip K. Dick short story and perfectly captured the styles of both director Paul Verhoeven and star Arnold Schwarzenegger. It delivered the action and memorable lines fans expected from Schwarzenegger, while also tackling thought-provoking themes like what’s real and the dangers of unchecked power. The 2012 remake, however, lost much of what made the original special—even the Mars setting—and became a forgettable action movie. This difference in quality is clear when you look at their ratings: the original Total Recall has an 81% score on Rotten Tomatoes, while the remake only scores 30%.

Edgar Wright, the director of The Running Man, was at the screening, and Arnold Schwarzenegger was much more impressed with this remake than he was with the Total Recall remake. Schwarzenegger praised the new adaptation of the Stephen King story, saying he was “blown away” and that Wright did a “fantastic job” creating the futuristic world they couldn’t fully realize in the original 1987 film.

I’ve always believed that one of my films, The Running Man, had a lot of potential but suffered from a limited budget. It was set in a future we couldn’t fully realize at the time, and I’ve often thought it could be remade to truly bring that vision to life.

Wright was thrilled by Schwarzenegger’s kind words, saying it meant a lot to hear him speak so positively about the film they all put so much effort into. He also appreciated Schwarzenegger’s generosity and support during the making of the movie.

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2025-11-24 15:33