The Spectacle of Survival: How ‘The Running Man’ Foreshadows the Future of Entertainment and Social Control
Nearly half of all Americans now regularly consume content featuring real people facing extreme challenges – from competitive cooking shows to survivalist competitions – a 43% increase in the last decade. The new film The Running Man, starring Glen Powell, isn’t just a remake of a 1987 action classic; it’s a chillingly prescient reflection of a trend already taking hold, and a warning about where it could lead. The film’s premise – a desperate man volunteering for a televised deathmatch for financial reward – taps into anxieties about economic precarity and the increasingly blurred lines between entertainment and exploitation.
From Stephen King to Streaming: The Evolution of Dystopian Entertainment
Edgar Wright’s adaptation, drawing more closely from Stephen King’s original 1982 novel (written under the pseudonym Richard Bachman), presents a starkly different America than the Reagan-era setting of the first film. This isn’t a shadowy underground; it’s a nationwide spectacle, broadcast across a fractured nation grappling with economic inequality. The shift in setting is crucial. It broadens the scope of the story and highlights how easily a desperate populace can be distracted by – and even participate in – the suffering of others. This echoes themes explored in recent works like The Long Walk, also based on a King story, where televised endurance contests serve as a grim distraction from societal woes.
The Gamification of Desperation: A New Form of Social Control
The core concept of The Running Man – turning human desperation into entertainment – isn’t far removed from the “challenge culture” dominating social media and streaming platforms. While not typically lethal, these contests often rely on exploiting vulnerability and amplifying anxieties for views. The film’s depiction of a public eager to “dob in” contestants for financial gain is particularly unsettling, mirroring the often-toxic dynamics of online communities and the ease with which misinformation can be weaponized. This isn’t simply about entertainment; it’s about a system designed to maintain control by diverting attention and fostering division. As Shoshana Zuboff argues in The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, our attention has become a commodity, and our vulnerabilities are the raw material.
Beyond Entertainment: The Rise of ‘Performative Reality’
The success of shows like Squid Game demonstrates a global appetite for narratives exploring extreme competition and the lengths people will go to for survival. But the trend extends beyond fictional dramas. We’re seeing a rise in “performative reality,” where individuals increasingly curate and broadcast their lives, often emphasizing struggle and hardship, for social validation and potential financial gain. This creates a feedback loop where authenticity is sacrificed for engagement, and desperation becomes a marketable commodity. The film’s portrayal of network CEO Dan Killian (Josh Brolin) manipulating the narrative to maximize ratings feels increasingly relevant in an age of algorithmic curation and “fake news.”
The Role of Technology: Drones, Data, and the Panopticon
The omnipresent drone surveillance in The Running Man isn’t science fiction; it’s a reflection of the rapidly expanding surveillance infrastructure already in place. From facial recognition technology to data tracking, our lives are increasingly monitored and analyzed. This creates a modern-day panopticon, where the constant possibility of observation influences behavior and reinforces conformity. The film’s depiction of a society willingly participating in this surveillance – for a slice of the financial pie – is a particularly chilling commentary on our current trajectory. The Electronic Frontier Foundation provides valuable resources on the implications of mass surveillance.
Powell’s Performance and the Appeal of the Underdog
Glen Powell’s charismatic portrayal of Ben Richards offers a crucial counterpoint to the dystopian setting. His resilience and defiance, even in the face of overwhelming odds, provide a glimmer of hope. The film wisely shifts Richards’s backstory from a former cop to a working-class Everyman, making his struggle more relatable and his potential for rebellion more potent. The cameos from William H Macy, Emilia Jones, and Michael Cera add layers of complexity and underscore the idea that resistance can come from unexpected places.
The Running Man isn’t just a thrilling action film; it’s a timely and unsettling commentary on the future of entertainment, social control, and the human cost of desperation. It forces us to confront uncomfortable questions about our own complicity in a system that increasingly commodifies suffering and exploits vulnerability. What safeguards can we put in place to ensure that the spectacle of survival doesn’t become a self-fulfilling prophecy?
Explore more insights on dystopian futures and the impact of technology on society in our Technology & Society section.
