Sep 26, 2026 · 24 min
Kyle Rankin bets on independent action outside Hollywood’s playbook
"Run Hide Fight: Infidels" Director Kyle Rankin On Hollywood, ISIS & Independent Film
The conversation examines how a politically controversial action film was made quickly and independently while balancing spectacle, character, and potential backlash.
- 1Kyle Rankin used an unusually fast production process and substantial creative freedom to make a controversial campus action thriller.
- 2Jonathan Majors helped lead a large ensemble through a compressed 26-day shoot, while Rankin emphasized meaningful arcs for major characters.
- 3Rankin argues that politically challenging material should ultimately be judged by whether it works as an effective action movie.
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Kyle Rankin explains why the film’s political controversy should ultimately give way to a simpler test: whether it works as an action movie.
The brief
Kyle Rankin describes being recruited to make Run, Hide, Fight: Infidels, then moving rapidly from writing to production after finding a college campus location and working with producer Dallas Saunier.
The film’s depiction of Islamic State-linked campus terrorism was designed to challenge Hollywood’s political habits, but Rankin acknowledges the difficulty of attracting talent to controversial material.
Jonathan Majors brought leadership to a large ensemble, while Rankin and comedian David Lucas supported younger cast members during a demanding 26-day shoot.
Rankin details the practical work behind the film’s large action sequences, its approximately six-million-dollar budget, and the planning required to coordinate intersecting character arcs.
His central test is straightforward: political controversy may follow the film, but its lasting judgment should depend on whether it succeeds as an action movie.
Featuring
Kyle Rankin
Jonathan Majors
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