BSP 159: From The Purge to This is the Night with James DeMonaco

The Purge franchise is one of the most iconic dystopian action
horror series of all time and the man behind it, James DeMonaco is
not stopping anytime soon.

James is our guest today and even though we talk a great deal about
the various Purge films he’s either written or directed, which are
all fan favorites, we start off with his most recently released
film, This Is The Night, that was digitally released on September
21, 2021, after a prior theater release on Sep 17, 2021.

This Is The Night, drama stars Frank Grillo, Lucius Hoyos, Jonah
Hauer-King, Bobby Cannavale, and Naomi Watts. It is set in the
summer of 1982 Staten Island with the release of Rocky III as its
backdrop.

The story tells of an average teen who embarks on a quest in his
Rocky Balboa-obsessed town that swirls in his family members. Watts
and Grillo will play with his parents. His family must confront its
greatest challenges and the family realizes that the only way to
live is like there's no tomorrow.

I have tons of questions for James in this interview, which I am
sure you, my tribe will appreciate. I have been a fan of some of
his work but clueless he had written other top-ranked films on my
list, it came as an exciting shock to discover more that James has
written, directed, or produced.

Besides screenwriting, directing, and producing projects like the
Purge movies,  he’s also written for TV and gets credit for
writing The Negotiator, Staten Island, Jack, and Assault on
Precinct 13.  

As a child of 5 years old, he would beg his more for a pass to
watch the 4:30 ABC network movies and would visit the cinema
often. At seven years old, he went to see, Apocalypse at the
cinema and that changed everything for him. Leaving that theater
with the desire to be part of that experience of whatever happened
on the screen. 

Through screenwriting, he landed his first production gig with
director Francis Coppola, for the 1996 movie, Jack, starring Robin
Williams. 

The inspiration for The Purge was birthed during James’s time
living in Paris and Canada. It came mainly, from his relationship
against guns even though he had grown up around cops.

The experience in Europe and Canada, in general, were the complete
opposites he had observed. This was around the time mass
shootings in America were on the rise in the early 2000s. Combined
with an aftermath dark thought from a road rage incident curious
about what it would be like if we all had a day pass, turned into a
masterpiece original screenplay. But dressed in a science fiction
dystopian world. 

The Purge: Anarchy - A couple is driving home when their car breaks
down just as the Purge commences. Meanwhile, a police sergeant goes
out into the streets to get revenge on the man who killed his son,
and a mother and daughter run from their home after assailants
destroy it. The five people meet up as they attempt to survive the
night in Los Angeles.

It was challenging to find someone willing to finance a
‘nihilistic’ and ‘un-American movie life The Purge. James and his
partners got about fifty rejections because of how dark the script
seemed.   

Until finally with help from Jason Blum who said it was a great fit
for his low-budget horror model on his deal with Universal Studios,
to be produced by Blumhouse Productions and Platinum Dunes.

The studio took a shot at it and the first Purge movie in 2013
albeit on a $3 million budget, grossed $89.3 million. The film
starred Ethan Hawke, Lena Headey, Adelaide Kane, and Max Burkholder
as members of a wealthy family who find themselves endangered by a
gang of murderers during the annual Purge, a night during which all
crime, including murder, is temporarily legal.

The franchise includes The Purge: Anarchy( 2014), The Purge:
Election Year (2016), a prequel, The First Purge (2018), The Purge
TV series (2018 to 2019), and The Forever Purge (2021).

There is a sixth Purge movie in the works. And the franchise has
grossed overall over $450 million against a combined production
budget of $53 million.

We go deep in the weeds on these projects and James’s writing
process.

Enjoy my conversation with James DeMonaco.

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