English filmmaker Edgar Wright’s been on a tear of late and really holding up the torch for cinema and the theatrical experience. Following his guest spot editing and curating the winter edition of Empire magazine—which culminated with an awesome three-hour podcast with Quentin Tarantino—the “Baby Driver” director has a new gig. Deadline reports that Wright has signed on to a new adaptation of Stephen King’s dystopian novel “The Running Man” for Paramount Pictures.
The novel was famously adapted by TriStar and director Paul Michael Glaser in 1987, starring the motley crew cast of Arnold Schwarzenegger, María Conchita Alonso, Richard Dawson, Yaphet Kotto, and Jesse Ventura. The film isn’t great, but it is still well-regarded as a full cult bauble, probably why Wright, Paramount, and King all believe it’s time for a new take.
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The original film, “The Running Man,” is set in a dystopian America, wherein a falsely convicted policeman gets his shot at freedom when he must forcibly participate in a TV game show where convicts, runners, must battle killers for their freedom.
King first published under the pseudonym Richard Bachman and this new version, co-written by “Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World” co-scriptwriter Michael Bacall, will be apparently more faithful to King’s bestselling novel, which is still dystopian, but grittier in its consideration of America’s economy in total ruins and the rising tides of world violence.
Wright’s been waiting to release “Last Night In Soho,” which has been delayed for several months due to the COVID-19 pandemic (it currently has April 23, 2021). The filmmaker also recently revealed that the screenplay to a “Baby Driver” sequel is complete. Just this morning, Wright released the full email Martin Scorsese sent him that made up what we call Martin Scorsese’s List Of 50 British Films You Need To See (Before You Die), which was featured on the aforementioned epic Empire podcast (see below).
The filmmaker also recently debuted the “The Sparks Brothers” documentary—about the cult artpop group Sparks— at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival to much critical acclaim (our review). That film should be out later this year. [Deadline]
