FILM · 2013 · FRANCE
The Purge
28 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (28)
- #001
According to director James DeMonaco, the famous traffic incident that inspired the idea for The Purge unfolded as follows: he and his wife were driving on the highway when a drunk driver cut them off and nearly killed them. After both cars stopped, the other driver's lack of remorse enraged DeMonaco so much that he nearly came to blows, and the police eventually had to intervene. Once it was over, DeMonaco's wife turned to him and said how great it would be if one murder a year were free. He felt bad admitting this, because she was normally a "sweet woman."
- #002
Ethan Hawke is an old friend of producer Jason Blum and director James DeMonaco, and he was happy to appear in The Purge to lend some star power to their low-budget films. As is usual on Blum's productions, cast and crew work for scale and take a percentage of the profits if there are any. Hawke reportedly received only $3,000 up front, but thanks to the film's worldwide success and backend profits, he probably earned more for this film than for any other in his career.
- #003
The murderous women in white dresses were inspired by Charles Manson's killers/followers. Director James DeMonaco claims he has been obsessed with Manson since childhood.
- #004
Rhys Wakefield was cast as the home invaders' Polite Leader one day before shooting began. Several casting sessions had been held, but all the other actors who auditioned had overplayed their roles. According to James DeMonaco, Wakefield played it calmly, with an unsettling smile as if he were toying with him; he was perfect for the role because he reminded DeMonaco of Charles Manson's cult dynamics.
- #005
Director James DeMonaco never thought the boyfriend attempting to kill the father fit well with the rest of the story. Initially it was supposed to be the daughter who tried to kill the father. The studio would not allow it, so the boyfriend was rewritten.
- #006
More than a hundred different masks were considered for the freaks.
- #007
In the thrilling five-minute scene in which the neighbors begin purging, a subtle detail that makes Mrs. Grace Ferrin especially threatening is that she never blinks while addressing her victim directly. Whether she smiles or not, the wide-eyed, entranced stare conveys psychological detachment.
- #008
In the film's opening sequence, which shows footage from different parts of the US during the Purge, the footage claimed to be from Sioux Falls, SD, was actually shot during the 1992 Los Angeles riots. The people shown shooting were Korean American business owners and other volunteers from the community trying to keep looters away, because Korean-owned businesses were especially targeted at the time due to ethnic tensions. These men are popularly known in culture as "Roof Koreans," because many of them positioned themselves on the roofs of businesses in Koreatown during the riots to better protect themselves and their property.
- #009
The Bloody Stranger, later identified as Dante Bishop in the third Purge film (played each time by Edwin Hodge), is the only person to appear in the first three Purge films.
- #010
In later digital releases of The Purge, the original sound effect in the opening Emergency Broadcast System scene was replaced with several high-pitched beeps to simulate a broadcast interruption notice. The reason for this change is unknown.
- #011
There is a character named Sabien in all three Purge films. They are usually referred to as Mrs. or Mr. Sabien, but all three films place them in different locations.
- #012
The film was turned into a horror zone at Halloween Horror Nights 2013 at Universal Hollywood Studios.
- #013
Director James DeMonaco spent ten years developing the film and never thought it would play in any cinema, let alone become a successful franchise. In 2023 he said: "When I wrote this, I never thought it would play in any multiplex across the country. The series is 10 years old, but the idea for the film is 20 years old. And when it was conceived, we thought it would only play at the Angelika [Film Center]. It was. We thought it would be a small independent horror thriller, and I didn't think it would have mainstream appeal. I think we counted 80 passes because the script was so anti-American. So if we got the film made, we assumed it would play in a very small venue like the Angelika, my favorite theater when I went to NYU."
- #014
Writer/director James DeMonaco has a deep fear of firearms and channeled that fear into the film, noting that traditional villains are now far less frightening and that random people carrying guns can cause massacres anywhere: "I fear for my country. So I think the cynicism seeps into the film. America itself becomes the canvas, the canvas instead of the haunted house is America. We no longer need ghosts or vampires while we're just killing each other, you know?"
- #015
In an interview in early June 2013, when asked what illegal activities he would commit if there were no consequences, Ethan Hawke replied: "I have a secret fantasy of being an environmental terrorist; like when I see oil spills, all those dead fish and forests being cut down. I'd love to throw some dynamite somewhere."
- #016
It is the only Purge film to open at number 1 in domestic box office revenue.
- #017
(At about the 21st minute) Zoey (Adelaide Kane) says she dislikes her father's boyfriend Henry (Tony Oller) because he is older than her. In real life, Kane is one year older than Oller.
- #018
There are six sirens when the Purge opens at 7:00 PM on March 21, and seven sirens when the Purge closes at 7:00 AM on March 22.
- #019
The total number of freaks at the Sandins' door is eight (until reinforcements arrive).
- #020
In the trailer, the voice of the Emergency Broadcast System is male. In the film, the voice is female.
- #021
After several successful runs as a scare zone at Halloween Horror Nights in Orlando, Florida, The Purge was turned into a full haunted maze for the 25th Halloween Horror Nights in 2015.
- #022
The house is located at 11841 Iverson Road in Chatsworth, California.
- #023
The film is set in the year 2022.
- #024
In Spain, the first four films of the franchise have different titles but share the same subtitle that defines it: The Purge: La noche de las bestias (The Purge: Night of the Beasts) (2013), Anarchy: La noche de las bestias (Anarchy: Night of the Beasts) (2014), Election: La noche de las bestias (Election: Night of the Beasts) (2016) and The First Purge: La noche de las bestias (The First Purge: Night of the Beasts) (2018).
- #025
As of 2025, with a 41% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, it is the worst-reviewed Purge film.
- #026
The Purge takes place every year on March 21. Written numerically, the date is 03-21, or 3…2…1, which represents a countdown.
- #027
Ethan Hawke also starred in Assault on Precinct 13 (2005), which has similar plot elements, telling the story of a group of people who come together to protect a stranger from a murderous gang.
- #028
The security system code is 101382.
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