This weekend proved disappointing for two new action movies: Predator: Badlands and The Running Man, starring Glen Powell and directed by Edgar Wright, both underperforming at the box office.
Initial box office numbers for Monday are available, and the film remake had a poor opening weekend, earning just $16.5 million – falling short of the predicted $17 million.
The film performed poorly internationally, opening with a disappointing $11.2 million. Combined with domestic earnings, the worldwide opening weekend totaled just $27.7 million. This is a weak result considering the movie cost $110 million to make and needs to earn around $275 million to become profitable.
This is Hollywood’s latest big-budget faceplant, and no amount of spin makes it look better.
It was less. RUNNING MAN made $16.5M in its opening weekend, now that the actual numbers are in. ($21.0 for Now You See Me.) https://t.co/kyKjTHeIVN
— Borys Kit (@Borys_Kit) November 17, 2025
Deadline Blames Covid and David Ellison — Seriously?
Rather than acknowledge the film was poorly made, Deadline published an article that blamed everything but the movie itself.
In a post strikes-COVID theatrical landscape where everyone is still trying to figure out what works, along comes Paramount‘s $110 million reboot ‘The Running Man’ starring Glen Powell.
But why did ‘The Running Man’ fall down at the box office?https://t.co/yx8a3TlNXH— Deadline (@DEADLINE) November 17, 2025
According to their report, The Running Man fell because of:
- Covid
- A post-strike landscape
- A leadership change at Paramount under David Ellison
- Marketing department limbo
It sounds like people are making a lot of excuses, but the simple truth is the movie failed because it just wasn’t good enough for audiences.
The problems with the movie weren’t due to the pandemic, the director, or a change in marketing. The weak dialogue, awkward scenes, uninteresting villains, and flat script were creative choices, not external factors.
As we mentioned in our review, The Running Man 2025 is simply not an enjoyable film. This is likely why audiences didn’t go to see it. It doesn’t measure up to the original movie starring Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The Real Reason It Bombed: The Movie Isn’t Good
The remake didn’t connect with audiences the way the Schwarzenegger classic did.
The experience was dull, unengaging, and lacked originality. Instead of focusing on entertainment, it seemed to prioritize appealing to a specific demographic, and the audience clearly wasn’t impressed with that strategy.
A Brutal Start With No Recovery in Sight
Despite opening with $16.5 million domestically and $27.7 million worldwide, The Running Man is considered a box office failure. It’s unlikely to become profitable, even if it had strong staying power, which it doesn’t.
This isn’t a Covid problem. It isn’t an Ellison problem. It’s a quality problem.
Viewers showed their disapproval by not buying tickets, and it’s obvious this remake failed right from the start.
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2025-11-18 02:31