What happens when a story still believes in morality—but no longer believes in objective moral truth?
In The Running Man (2025), Ben Richards is motivated by his love for his family, and that love is genuinely good. But the story gradually makes family the highest good, replacing objective moral order with relational loyalty. The question becomes not “What is right?” but “Who do you protect?”
Zena Dell Lowe examines what this reveals about a larger shift in modern Hollywood storytelling: corruption becomes inevitable, justice becomes impossible, and heroes learn to navigate broken systems rather than overcome them.
This isn't simply a critique of The Running Man. It's a look at the worldview underneath the story—and what happens when a good thing becomes an ultimate thing.
Is there something worth choosing above that?
Watch this episode on YouTube
Free Resources for Writers:
Seven Deadly Plot Points FREE TRAINING VIDEO
Free Video Tutorial for Screenwriting
Sign up for The Storyteller's Digest, my exclusive bi-monthly newsletter for writers and storytellers. Each edition delivers an insightful article or practical writing tip straight from me, designed to help you master your craft and tell compelling stories.
The Storyteller's Mission Podcast is now on YouTube. Subscribe to our channel and never miss a new episode or announcement.
📚 About The Storyteller’s Mission
The Storyteller’s Mission helps writers craft stories grounded in truth, meaning, and moral clarity — stories that shape culture rather than merely reflect it. We provide practical tools, writing tips, actionable lessons, and storytelling techniques to help you develop compelling stories, master story structure, build unforgettable characters, and polish your craft for personal and commercial success. Whether you’re writing novels, screenplays, or short stories, our bold, dynamic approach empowers you to execute your ideas with confidence and creativity—and maybe, just maybe, change the world.
Support the Show!
Contact us for anything else!
Chapters
00:00 The System Always Wins
00:16 What The Running Man Says About Reality
00:46 When Transcendence Gets Replaced
01:11 The World of The Running Man
02:17 A Hero Wired for Justice
03:25 Morality Is Actively Suppressed
05:40 Family Is Everything
06:46 When Good Gets Redefined
07:38 The New Transcendence
08:27 The Logic Chain
08:55 Morality Becomes Tribal
09:27 The System's Offer
10:10 Sacrifice for Family
11:38 How the System Seduces
12:47 The Propaganda Machine
14:15 The Hunters
15:39 The System Absorbs Its Threats
16:45 The Trap
18:00 The False Hope of Rebellion
19:14 The Final Choice
20:19 He Doesn't Defeat the System
21:07 The System Gets What It Wants
22:49 Why This Ending Matters
23:31 The Hollywood Move
24:00 Cynicism About Justice
24:49 Why It Feels True
25:15 Morality Becomes Loyalty
26:05 The Worldview Shift
27:06 Heroes Who Navigate, Not Overcome
27:54 When Family Becomes Ultimate
28:22 The Question
28:49 Is There Something Worth Choosing Above That?
Send us Fan Mail
Support the show
