Oral Histories

An Oral History of the Purge Movies with Jason Blum and James DeMonaco

The super producer and the series creator talk about the lightbulb moment that led to the idea of the Purge, how they manage to foresee the (very dark) future, and why this franchise is ultimately about hope.

by RT Staff | July 2, 2021 | Comments

The idea of the Purge, the annual night of legal violence that forms the spine of the scarily successful franchise from Blumhouse Productions, has surprising origins: a road-rage incident involving The Purge creator James DeMonaco’s usually more mild-mannered wife. How did a small reaction (and some time the filmmaker spent in Paris) lead to a horror phenomenon? DeMonaco and producer Jason Blum recently spoke to Rotten Tomatoes for an exclusive deep dive on the history of the Purge films, from that inciting incident right through to the series’ new – and rumored to be last – movie, The Forever Purge, which opens in theaters Friday. How have the films managed to so closely mirror real-life events? (Remember 2016’s terrifyingly prescient The Purge: Election Year?) Why do the filmmakers ultimately see these dark cautionary tales as stories of hope? Tune in to find out.