Stephen King’s Running Man Remake Casts a Lord of the Rings Alum as a Villain

The upcoming remake of Stephen King’s The Running Man threw out another key villain, this time an all of The Lord of the Rings Franchise joining the movie. The upcoming remake of The Running Man Play Glen Powell as Ben Richards, a desperate father competing in a deadly reality show to win the grand prize and pay for his sick daughter’s medicine. The movie has already portrayed Josh Brolin as the main villain, a producer of the show, while Cathy O’Brien will portray another contestant. Daniel Ezra and Carl Glusman will also star in the movie.

now, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed Lee Pace will be joining The Running Man Remake as a main villain. Known for his role as Thranduil in The Hobbit Trilogy, part of The Lord of the Rings franchise, the actor will portray a killer who hunts down contestants as part of the game. This indicates that he will have a more hands-on approach when it comes to pursuing Powell’s character, as he will chase contestants until the last one standing wins the grand prize.

What the casting of Lee Pace means for the remake of The Running Man

The remake continues to sound more faithful to King’s novel

Apart from his role in The HobbitLee Pace’s roles have included Ronan the Accuser in Guardians of the GalaxyNed in the TV series Pushing DaisiesAnd Joe McMillan in another show, Stop and catch fire. His most recent roles include Greg in the 2022 horror comedy Bodies bodies bodies and as Brother Day in Apple TV+’s sci-fi show foundation Given the versatility of his roles over the past decade, he has proven himself to be the perfect casting choice in any number of roles, including that of a primary antagonist.

News of his casting also indicates just how tight the new movie is will adapt King’s original novel. While the first film with Arnold Schwarzenegger is considered a classic sci-fi film, It’s not quite accurate to the gritty, oppressive mood of the source material. However, Powell’s The Running Man Remake seems like it will have a greater focus on the main character trying to win the game by any means necessary, slowly evolving as the film progresses. Pace’s character seems like the perfect way to differentiate both versions from one another.

Our take on Lee Pace’s casting in The Running Man

He will be a perfect antagonist of boots on the ground

Given his acting skills in both movies and television, Pace will make a perfect boots-on-the-ground antagonist in The Running Man. Since he will ruthlessly go after Powell’s character, he will be able to draw from his more villainous roles in order to encapsulate the punishing pursuit he will undertake. With a lot of twists and turns the reality show will undoubtedly, it seems that the more accurate adaptation to King’s work will have a lot of engagement for him during its runtime.

Source: THR