Glen Powell is no stranger to action. He was, after all, a standout in Top Gun: Maverick, where he learned the secrets of high-flying setpieces unde
Glen Powell is no stranger to action. He was, after all, a standout in Top Gun: Maverick, where he learned the secrets of high-flying setpieces under the wing of Tom Cruise. And he was a pure adrenaline junkie in Twisters as ‘tornado wrangler’ Tyler Owens, putting pedal to metal as he chased wild weather events for kicks. But The Running Man is different. In Edgar Wright’s fresh adaptation of the Stephen King novel, Powell’s Ben Richards will be… well, running, and fighting, and leaping into action, evading bullets, dodging killers, and scrambling for his life as he battles to win a deadly gameshow in exchange for the cash he needs to save his child’s life. Get ready: Powell is powering up.
The aim, he says, is to provide a viscerally electrifying experience. “There are some sick shots in this movie,” the star tells Empire in our world-exclusive The Running Man issue. “I talked to Edgar about this. I was like, ‘I need people to know that it’s me sprinting.’ So he designed an amazing shot in the movie where I can fully unleash. I didn’t want people to be like, ‘He was good at everything except for running!’” Despite that title, there’ll be more for Powell to do than proving he doesn’t skip leg day. “We’re hanging on the side of buildings,” he laughs. “We’re jumping off of moving cars and trains. An elevator plummets while I’m inside of it. There’s an amazing airplane fight sequence that is just incredible.”
For Wright, it’s a chance to dial further into the action chops he’s previously displayed in Hot Fuzz’s gun-toting finale, Scott Pilgrim and The World’s End’s brawls, and Baby Driver’s burning-rubber car chases. Take, for instance, an epic bridge-jump stunt Empire witnessed on set. “It was a real endeavour to actually create that on location, and to not do a CGI thing or a green-screen version of it,” says the director. “You can say, on the record, that you saw Glen Powell jump off a bridge!” It’s the sort of film that requires a leading man who can truly do it all – after all, you need a Running Man who can really run. “You’re with Glen in every single scene in the movie,” says Wright. “That’s something I really liked about the book: it was a very intense, subjective experience.” The chase is on.
Read Empire’s full The Running Man cover story – going on set to witness the action, and speaking to Edgar Wright, Glen Powell, Josh Brolin, Katy O’Brian, Colman Domingo and more – in the October 2025 issue, on sale Thursday 28 August. Pre-order a copy online here. The Running Man comes to UK cinemas from 14 November.
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