The Purge

The Purge (2013)

The Purge stars Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Max Burkholder, Adelaide Kane, Edwin Hodge, Tony Oller, Rhys Wakefield and Arija Bareikis.

An affluent Los Angeles neighborhood is home to the Sandin family. On Purge night 2022, the family becomes a target of a masked gang of young criminals due to their actions in helping a wounded stranger being targeted by Purgers to take shelter in their home. The sadistic gang leader unmasks himself to threaten the family via the cameras that they would be murdered if they don't surrender the man within an hour. The stranger later helps the Sandins when the purging gang and the hateful neighbors invade the household and attempt to kill them.

Despite mixed reviews, the film grossed $89.3 million during its run, far surpassing its $3 million budget. The film was turned into a scare zone for 2014's annual Halloween Horror Nights due to its success.

The Purge: Anarchy (2014)

The Purge: Anarchy, released worldwide on July 18, 2014,^[2] stars Frank Grillo, Carmen Ejogo, Zach Gilford, Kiele Sanchez, Zoë Soul and Michael K. Williams while Edwin Hodge reprises his role of "The Stranger" from the first movie.^[3] Unlike the first Purge film, which was set entirely in one house during the carnage, Anarchy takes viewers out to the Los Angeles area and shows more of what happens to the surroundings during the Purge.

Off-duty Los Angeles Police Department sergeant Leo Barnes purges to avenge his son's death and becomes the protector of a married couple whose car breaks down on the Purge's commencement and a working-class mother and daughter who are kidnapped from their home. The wounded stranger from the first film is the partner of Carmelo Johns, leader of an anti-Purge resistance group that hacks into TV programs to broadcast messages challenging the system, stating that the Purge does not cleanse aggression, but rather eliminates the poor.

The film was met with generally mixed reviews, though many critics agreed it was a large improvement over the first film, and was a box office success, grossing $111.9 million compared to its $9 million budget.

The Purge: Election Year (2016)

The third film was released on July 1, 2016^[4] in which Frank Grillo and Edwin Hodge reprise their roles from the previous film, and are joined by Elizabeth Mitchell, who plays Senator Charlie Roan. On October 6, it was announced that James DeMonaco would be back for the third film to write and direct, while producers Sébastien K. Lemercier, Blumhouse Productions' Jason Blum, and Platinum Dunes partners Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form would also be back. Shooting began on September 16 in Woonsocket, Rhode Island.^[5] Edwin Hodge and Frank Grillo reprise their roles from the previous film.

LAPD sergeant Leo Barnes is the chief of security for U.S. Senator and leading U.S. presidential candidate Charlie Roan, who vows to end the Purge, having witnessed the death of her family 18 years ago, during the events of the first film. In a bid to prevent this from happening, The New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) takes the unprecedented step of abolishing the protection afforded to government officials of ranking 10, allowing the U.S. public to target all government officials for the first time since the purge's creation. After a betrayal within the government targets her for death minutes after the Purge's commencement, Barnes must protect Roan while on the run for safety until they meet and form an alliance with some of her supporters; two shopkeepers, an EMT, and an anti-Purge rebel team headed by the wounded Stranger from the first two films, whose real name is Dante Bishop. The group are also aided by the notorious Crips gang to avoid an NFFA-loyal neo-Nazi/white supremacist paramilitary team from capturing the senator. Meanwhile, the NFFA candidate and Roan's rival, Minister Edwidge Owens, who has been set up as a candidate to maintain the status quo, leads the NFFA in committing more acts of violence during Purge night as rebels try to protect more citizens.

The First Purge (2018)

In September 2016, James DeMonaco, who wrote and directed every film in the series thus far, stated that the fourth film would be a prequel to the trilogy. The film shows how the United States got to the point of accepting the Purge.^[6]

In February 2017, DeMonaco announced that a fourth installment was in development. DeMonaco returned to write the script, while Jason Blum, Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, and Andrew Form returning to produce the film with Sébastien K. Lemercier.^[7] In July 2017 it was announced that Gerard McMurray was signed to direct the film, and shooting began in September 2017 in Buffalo, New York.^[8] The film was released on July 4, 2018.^[9]

Future

In an interview with Scream, The Purge television series show runner Thomas Kelly stated that a heist film set on Purge Night has been considered.^[10]

The Purge (2018)

A television series about the formation of the Purge is also hinted by DeMonaco. The series would possibly deal with how the New Founding Fathers were voted to office after overthrowing the U.S. Government during an economic collapse and social unrest and how they came up with the idea of the Purge. In May 2017, it was reported that Syfy and USA Network will premiere the series in 2018.^[11] On February 26, 2018, it was announced that Gabriel Chavarria and Jessica Garza were cast as the leads in the upcoming series. Chavarria will portray Miguel, a US Marine who returns home on Purge Night after receiving a cryptic message from his sister, Penelope portrayed by Garza belonging to a Purge worshipping cult and has pledged to become a sacrifice at the will of their charismatic leader forcing Miguel to face the senseless violence on the streets alone in order to protect those he loves most – his family.^[12] The series premiered on September 4, 2018.

Box office performance

Critical and public response