I want you to hit me as hard as you can...
The Purge. For one night each year, Americans get an opportunity to indulge in their darkest violent
fantasies without fear of consequences. Over a period of 12 bloodthirsty hours every March 21st,
it's completely legal to commit a felony - assault, arson, vandalism, murder,
grand theft, copyright infringement, probably.
This hypothetical holiday and its aspects are now part of the pop culture lexicon,
but it began from small origins. How did this low-cost, high-concept movie seemingly come
out of nowhere and overcome middling reviews to grow into a popular and wildly profitable
franchise with almost half a billion dollars at the worldwide box office? Sharpen your favorite
machete and prepare to release the beast as we find out what the [ __ ] happened to this movie!
Producer Jason Blum got his start at studios like Miramax and Paramount before launching his
own company with Blumhouse Productions. Thanks to surprise theatrical hits like Paranormal Activity
and Insidious, Blum earned a reputation for his unorthodox but successful business model.
As part of keeping his budgets minuscule, above-the-line talent on Blumhouse movies only
receive a small upfront fee. Instead, the actors, directors, writers and producers will only collect
cash if the movie performs well. With a relatively low investment risk, this approach gives Blumhouse
and the filmmakers a level of creative control and financial incentive that is now unheard of
in the Hollywood studio system. Because his production company does partner with studios
for distribution, and more importantly their experienced marketing departments,
Blum specifically pursues scripts with modest budgets and high concept ideas with a distinct
hook that can be easily advertised. And The Purge was about as high concept as it gets.
Home invasion thrillers tend to involve a robbery, or revenge, or fugitives looking for a hideout.
The Purge added a new twist to the genre - it presents a near future where the US government,
now called the New Founding Fathers of America, has sanctioned a single night of mayhem and
murder. One affluent family believes they are adequately protected during this event, until
the freaks come a-knocking with a taste for blood. The seed for the movie came from an actual real
life road rage incident. One time when driving in Brooklyn, writer-director James Demonaco and his
wife were cut off by a drunk driver, leading to a physical altercation until police intervened.
Aggravated by the close call and the actions of the belligerent drunk, Demonaco's wife mentioned
how great it would be to get a "free one" each year. He was surprised at the comment from his
otherwise peaceful wife, but also knew exactly what she meant, and this concept of legal murder
stuck with him. Demonaco shared the idea with his regular producing partner Sebastien Lemercier and
was encouraged to write a script. In addition to the inciting road rage encounter, he was provoked
by the country's poor response to hurricane Katrina and his general concerns over America's
obsessive relationship with guns. He also drew inspiration from the Japanese movie Battle Royale,
about unruly teens forced to eliminate each other in a futuristic government-run tournament,
and the original Star Trek episode Return of the Archons, in which the enterprise crew discovers
a controlled society that has a Festival when aggression and destruction is permitted. Demonaco
has described his early draft as an extremely bizarre X-rated treatise on violence, and compared
it to a Jodorowsky film. Once he fine-tuned the idea and structure, it became a more
straightforward morality play about class division and gun violence. He wanted to employ what Martin
Scorsese called "smuggler cinema," where directors would make genre movies but smuggle in bigger
ideas and social commentary. Demonaco cites George Romero and John Carpenter as masters of this
subversive tactic. But he was continually told his script was too political and anti-American, and
held no commercial appeal. Fortunately, Jason Blum felt otherwise when the script landed on his desk.
He gave Demonaco almost three million dollars to put his idea on film, with Michael Bay's Platinum
Dunes company co-producing and Universal handling the marketing and distribution for the end result.
The story and tone were further tweaked and streamlined during the process.
Demonaco wanted to play it real in order to make it more tense and frightening, whereas earlier
versions had been too close to satire. While he did want to inject macabre humor, the concern was
that if it was too funny, then audiences would not connect or relate to the main characters.
There was also the challenge of just how much explanation of the annual event should be
included. Demonaco had intricately charted how various legalizations would eventually lead to
a single night of government-sponsored crime, and how this momentary celebration of slaughter would
somehow make the country safer during the rest of the year. The original idea was that the story
would be set during the 10th anniversary of the Purge, with TV coverage in the movie communicating
the detailed history. Demonaco described the exposition as "ridiculously elaborate," but he and
his creative partners ultimately realized it was more effective to remove it and just drop hints,
letting audiences fill in the gaps. For the lead role of home security salesman James Sandin,
Ethan Hawke seemed like an obvious choice. Blum had known the actor for 20 years, and worked
as the producing director for Hawke's New York theater company. The two had already collaborated
on another Blumhouse horror success with Sinister. Hawke had previously worked with Demonaco on the
Assault on Precinct 13 remake and his directing debut Staten Island. And even before all that,
the three had nearly worked together on a serial killer movie before financing fell through.
Hawke described his character in the purge as kind of a square who, over the course of the
nightmare experience, slowly realizes just how out of touch he is. Demonaco wanted the character to
represent American apathy, helping perpetuate the Purge propaganda because it earned him status and
wealth. Lena Headey, who then was just starting to make an impact as the devious Cersei Lannister
on Game of Thrones, was cast as James's wife Mary. Her character has accepted the financial stability
her husband provides, but is more ambivalent about the yearly carnage that feeds their bank account.
Not long after the sirens sound and the Purge commences, the safety of the Sandin
home is shattered. Daughter Zoey's boyfriend has slipped into the house with an urge to purge,
and son Charlie offers sanctuary to a homeless veteran being hunted - a decision that
Demonaco knew would either make audiences feel sympathetic or angry. In sequels to the movie,
Edwin Hodge's stranger would evolve into a key member of an anti-Purge resistance.
Things go from bad to worse for the Sandin family with the arrival of the masked predators demanding
the release of their quarry. Just one day before filming started, Rhys Wakefield was selected
to play the politely grinning leader of these sadistic visitors. Demonaco chose the Australian
actor because he could convey both charisma and an underlying madness, similar to Charles Manson.
Demonaco has said the Manson TV miniseries Helter Skelter left a strong impression on him at a young
age - the accomplices in white dresses were also a nod to Manson's fanatical followers.
For the unnerving masks of the menacing freaks, the costume designer went through over a hundred
designs, but the scariest ended up being a simple female mask that looked like botched
cosmetic surgery. Blum said they made a conscious decision not to have the mask resemble an animal
but instead like a human face gone wrong. The movie's large house and gated community were meant
to represent new rich in America. The producers specifically wanted it to visually feel anonymous
enough so that audiences couldn't tell where in the country it might be. The home was designed
to have plenty of hiding spaces to help ratchet up the tension during the incursion of purgers.
It was intended to show that even a mansion can feel claustrophobic when you're trapped inside
under pressure. Filming was completed in a brisk 19 days. When it came time to market the movie,
Universal's approach focused on those creepy masks, a strong social media engagement,
and posters and billboards warning that emergency services would be suspended for the event.
Whether it was the concept, or the timing, or the marketing, something worked - The Purge opened
in North American theaters on June 7, 2013, earning an unexpected 34 million dollars on
its first weekend despite competing against Fast and Furious 6 and The Hangover part 3.
Unsurprisingly for a horror movie, the reviews were not particularly positive, with critics using
terms like cliche, vile, flimsy, and ludicrous. But that didn't matter. The micro-budget R-rated
horror thriller would go on to collect 91 million dollars worldwide, putting some fat
paychecks into the pockets of the creative talent behind the movie. Before the release,
Demonaco was concerned that some viewers who were intrigued by the concept would be disappointed
by the self-contained nature that the budget necessitated. The opening credits were actually
added after early cuts to provide a glimpse of what was occurring across America during the
night of chaos. But the movie's limited scope was still the biggest complaint from audiences.
Demonaco would almost immediately get the opportunity to expand his concept - when The Purge
opened big at the box office, Universal called to let him know they wanted a sequel in time for the
following summer. He hadn't put too much thought into continuing the story but he was inspired by
movies like Escape from New York and The Warriors to show the bloodlust in the city streets.
A frenzied year of filmmaking later, The Purge: Anarchy arrived on screens in July 2014
and improved on the box office and reviews of the original. Demonaco finished his trilogy in 2016
with Election Year, a more overtly political and provocative chapter that concluded with the Purge
being abolished. Once again, it made a bundle at the box office. The Purge holiday itself might
have been repealed in Election Year, but still a variety of questions, both ethical and logistical,
lingered about the annual event. Is anything not legal? How is the Purge regulated?
How does it affect human behavior the rest of the year? What was the first Purge like?
Why would some people willingly allow themselves to be purged? Even after three movies, there were
clearly still stories left to tell, leading to the prequel The First Purge, the highest grossing of
the franchise, along with two seasons of a TV series and The Forever Purge in summer of 2021.
That movie will finally mark the end of the Purge - theoretically. The filmmakers had
initially concocted the series as a statement on the fascination with violence and the absurdity
of gun laws in the United States - it's probably no surprise that the emblem for the New Founding
Fathers of America could pass as an NRA logo. But as the series continued to explore its
social allegory, it increasingly resonated as the political climate and racial tensions in the
country intensified. Demonaco considers himself a cynic but finds his own high concept grotesque,
not intended as exploitative wish fulfillment or glorification of violence. He told the LA Times:
"My fear has always been that i never wanted any audience member to think that i was promoting
the Purge." The franchise would come to draw uncomfortable parallels to reality,
with the third movie's tagline even adopted for an actual election campaign slogan.
The first movie was set in 2022, now not too far from when the existence of an actual event
feels almost plausible. In 2018, Blum said "the notion of the Purge when we started was this
fantastical idea. It seems a lot less outlandish now. I wish we hadn't predicted the future." But
while its metaphors remain relevant, as a form of entertainment, The Purge has made an undeniable
and lasting impact. The warning siren, inspired by the haunting tripod bellow from Steven Spielberg's
War of the Worlds, is instantly identifiable as the commencement of the homicidal holiday.
Those unsettling masks and costumes have crept into the pop culture collective
and have been featured at the Universal theme park Halloween Horror Nights.
The Purge series has been referenced in everything from Brooklyn Nine-Nine -
nope it immediately turned into a Purge - to Supernatural - whole town's panicking
like it's the Purge - to Rick and Morty - it's a Purge planet, they're peaceful and then you know
they just Purge - to Meet the Blacks - We ain't scared of no damn Purge, we're from Cook County.
Jason Blum would continue to apply his business model to productions, achieving colossal success
with a string of genre hits. But his little movie about authorized anarchy holds a special place.
As he recently said to Total Film magazine: "The Purge was really the movie that felt like
it wasn't just a magic trick and we weren't just getting lucky, that we actually had a different
kind of system that worked." Millions of fans, and millions of dollars, would seem to agree.
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