In 'The Running Man' by Stephen King, what is the protagonist's name?

In Stephen King’s novel The Running Man, the protagonist’s name is Ben Richards.

Richards is a poor, unemployed 28-year-old living in a dystopian United States in the year 2025. His daughter is seriously ill, and his family lacks the money needed for medical treatment. In desperation, he enters a government-controlled television contest called The Running Man, where contestants are hunted by professional killers known as Hunters.

The novel was published in 1982 under King’s pseudonym, Richard Bachman. Its version of Richards is a thin, physically vulnerable man driven by poverty, anger, and desperation. That portrayal is very different from Arnold Schwarzenegger’s muscular action-hero version in the 1987 film adaptation, even though the film retains the character’s name.

The novel’s premise also predates the modern reality-show era: contestants are broadcast to the public while trying to survive a government-backed manhunt. Richards receives money for remaining alive and can earn additional rewards by killing pursuers. The character’s full name, Ben Richards, is therefore the single canonical answer for the novel.