Released on November 14, 2025, Edgar Wright's dystopian action thriller, The Running Man, currently holds a 64% critics' score and a 78% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
After completing three weeks in theaters, the box office momentum of the Glen Powell-starrer adaptation has slowed down.
With a current global total of $61.7 million, the film now appears unlikely to cross the $70 million mark during its ongoing run. That said, it is expected to break into 2025's top 50 highest-grossing titles before the end of its theatrical run (Box Office Mojo).
This brings us to another key box office metric: which adaptation of The Running Man delivered a better box office performance relative to its budget - the 1987 Arnold Schwarzenegger version or the 2025 Glen Powell version? Let's break down the numbers.
The Running Man (1987) Vs. The Running Man (2025) - Earnings & Budgets
Here's how much the two Stephen King adaptations earned at the box office, along with their respective production budgets:
- The Running Man (1987): Worldwide Earnings: $38.1 million | Production Budget: $27 million
- The Running Man (2025): Worldwide Earnings: $61.7 million | Production Budget: $110 million
Earnings-to-Budget Performance
The above numbers make the comparison straightforward. The 1987 Running Man adaptation, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, earned roughly 1.4 times its production budget, marking a satisfactory financial return for its time. In contrast, the 2025 Glen Powell-led version has generated only about 0.56 times its budget so far.