The Purge creator James DeMonaco has opened up about the status of the planned sixth big-screen entry in the action/horror franchise.
During an interview with The Playlist, DeMonaco reaffirmed that he had finished the script for The Purge 6, and that the film would see the return of Frank Grillo‘s Leo Barnes. However, he also revealed that the film was currently in a state of limbo, owing to concerns at Universal Pictures regarding its budget.
“I wrote the script. Universal has seen it,” DeMonaco said. “There are concerns about budget, but it definitely presents a fractured America … The America I present in Purge 6 is where we all are separated by ideology and sexual preference. So, the states are broken down in different ways.”
The filmmaker elaborated, “It’s written, it’s in [Universal’s] hands. I think they’re scared about the budget. But my thing was if I was going to come back and direct a sixth one, it was going to be something bigger and a little more epic in scope, with this new America I want to present and bringing back [Frank Grillo’s] character. So, it’s kinda in limbo.”
The Purge turns 10 this year
Written and directed by DeMonaco, The Purge originally released in theaters in 2013. The film takes place in a world where the United States holds an annual event where all crime is legal for 12 hours. DeMonaco returned to write and direct two sequels, The Purge: Anarchy and The Purge: Election Year, which released in 2014 and 2016, respectively. Both Anarchy and Election Year featured Grillo’s Leo Barnes as their main protagonist.
2018 saw the release of The First Purge, which was written by DeMonaco and directed by Gerard McMurray. As its title implies, The First Purge is a prequel, taking place before the events of the original 2013 film. 2016’s Election Year eventually got a direct sequel in the form of The Forever Purge. Written by DeMonaco and directed by Everardo Gout, The Forever Purge released in 2021 as the franchise’s fifth and ostensibly final big-screen installment.
That said, in addition to the planned sixth film, a television adaptation simply titled The Purge also aired on the USA Network for two seasons from 2018 to 2019.