‘The Running Man’ Debuts at No.1 on iTunes Streaming Release

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People had mixed reactions to Edgar Wright’s latest film, but despite a weak performance in theaters, the action thriller quickly became the most popular title on iTunes after becoming available for rental and purchase online.

While it might not be a classic holiday movie like Die Hard, Glen Powell’s new film has quickly become the most popular digital release this week. It’s currently beating out other recent films like Now You See Me: Now You Don’t and One Battle After Another in terms of views.

Released in mid-November, The Running Man generated buzz and even received a positive nod from Arnold Schwarzenegger, who starred in the original film. However, critics at Rotten Tomatoes gave it a mixed 63% rating. Audiences enjoyed it more, awarding it a 79% score – higher than the original Schwarzenegger movie. Despite director Dale Powell’s previous hits, the film wasn’t a financial success. With a budget of $110 million, its $69 million box office total meant it flopped.

As a more faithful adaptation of King’s novel, which was written under the pseudonym of Richard Bachman, the synopsis of the movie reads:

Set in the not-too-distant future, The Running Man is the most popular show on television – a brutal contest where participants, called Runners, must evade professional killers for 30 days, all while being broadcast live to a captivated and bloodthirsty audience. Each day they survive earns a bigger reward. Ben Richards, a working-class man desperate to pay for his daughter’s medical care, is persuaded by the show’s smooth but heartless producer, Dan Killian, to join as a last hope. However, Ben’s courage, natural skill, and determination quickly make him a popular hero – and a danger to the show’s carefully controlled system. As the show’s ratings soar, so does the risk to Ben, who must now outsmart not only the Hunters chasing him, but an entire country obsessed with watching his potential downfall.

2025 was a Great Year for Stephen King Fans


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Hollywood has had a lot of success recently adapting Stephen King’s books and stories. This year was especially good, with some of the best movie adaptations of his work appearing now.

Early in the year, Osgood Perkins offered a wonderfully gruesome, funny, and violent adaptation of The Monkey. Soon after, Mike Flanagan, a frequent collaborator with Stephen King, released his moving version of The Life of Chuck, featuring Tom Hiddleston in a performance many hailed as one of the best Stephen King movies ever made. More recently, both The Running Man and The Long Walk – another novel from King’s collection of works under the name “Bachman” – were released to widespread acclaim.

Between the success of IT: Welcome to Derry on HBO Max and its strong viewership over eight episodes, plus the upcoming Carrie series from Mike Flanagan in 2026 and other projects in the works, 2025 has been a great year for Stephen King fans. This consistent stream of adaptations helps explain why King is so often considered one of the most important storytellers of his generation.

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2025-12-19 14:48