Movie-goers who went to see 28 Years Later over this past weekend were introduced to an “alpha” infected / zombie character called Samson, who was played by 6-foot-8-inch actor and former MMA fighter Chi Lewis-Parry – and were also treated to the sight of Samson tearing off a human head with the spine still attached. During an interview with Variety, Lewis-Parry revealed that he has a role in the upcoming remake of the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie The Running Man, and that one of his career goals is to join another franchise that got started with a Schwarzenegger movie, as he wants to play a Predator.
The Running Man is based on a novel that was written by Stephen King under his Richard Bachman pen name. King’s novel has the following description: It was the ultimate death game in a nightmare future America. The year is 2025 and reality TV has grown to the point where people are willing to wager their lives for a chance at a billion-dollar jackpot. Ben Richards is desperate – he needs money to treat his daughter’s illness. His last chance is entering a game show called The Running Man where the goal is to avoid capture by Hunters who are employed to kill him. Surviving this month-long chase is another issue when everyone else on the planet is watching – and willing to turn him in for the reward. The remake, which is expected to be closer to the source material than the 1987 Schwarzenegger movie was, is directed by Edgar Wright from a script he co-wrote with Michael Bacall. Wright is also producing the film with Nira Park and Simon Kinberg. Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) has the lead role and is joined in the cast by Katy O’Brian (who had a breakthrough role in Love Lies Bleeding and shared the screen with Powell in Twisters) as a contestant; Daniel Ezra, who played the character Spencer James on 106 episodes of the CW series All American; Josh Brolin (Outer Range), playing a TV executive who is the main villain; Lee Pace (Halt and Catch Fire) as a ruthless hunter; Michael Cera (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World) as a “naïve rebel who tries to help the desperate man”; Emilia Jones (CODA) as a “privileged woman blind to the oppression of the government“; David Zayas (Dexter) as a character named Richard Manuel; Colman Domingo (Fear the Walking Dead) as the host of The Running Man, a violent reality show promising an outrageous cash prize; and William H. Macy of Fargo and Boogie Nights.
Lewis-Parry told Variety, “I just worked on The Running Man with Edgar Wright. I’m one of the runners and he’s a very specific runner. I don’t know how much more I’m allowed to say. But it’s a really fun role.”
Noting that Lewis-Parry posted an image on Instagram last year that indicated he was aiming to play the steel-toothed henchman Jaws in a James Bond movie, the interviewer asked if he has been lobbying to be in the new James Bond movie. Lewis-Parry aswered, “Listen, if there is an ultimate role, it’s to be a Bond villain. This journey to work in film actually started properly in 2005, not long before Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale came out and it sort of ignited that fire in me to be that character. Back then, I remember thinking, ‘What are the two roles I’d like to play?’ I was quite narrow-minded, but because I’m big and thought my way in could be as a creature actor, I was like, ‘Oh, I want to play the Predator. And I wanted to be a Bond villain.’ And I actually had a big realization moment in that tunnel when I was holding the head and spine [in 28 Years Later]. Because I realized: I was the Predator, but my own version. And that was a real turning point for me, because I realized: You made this happen in 2005 because you thought about it and started the process. And I’ve done more than think about being a Bond villain. … I haven’t had any official discussions, but I’ve definitely put it out there.“
While we wait to see whether or not Chi Lewis-Parry will have the chance to play a Predator or a James Bond villain, The Running Man is set to reach theatres on November 7th.
