Universal has released the first poster for the fourth installment of The Purge franchise, titled The First Purge. The film is expected to serve as a prequel to the franchise, exploring how the annual purge originated. The official synopsis for the new film explains:
To push the crime rate below one percent for the rest of the year, the New Founding Fathers of America (NFFA) test a sociological theory that vents aggression for one night in one isolated community. But when the violence of oppressors meets the rage of the marginalized, the contagion will explode from the trial-city borders and spread across the nation.
Partnering yet again with Blumhouse Productions, the film series’ creator James DeMonaco will produce for the first time on the series, alongside Michael Bay and longtime producing partner Sébastien K. Lemercier. Though their roles have not yet been revealed, an entirely new cast will show up in the film, including one Oscar winner, Marisa Tomei. Tomei will also star in the second season of The Handmaid’s Tale, which you can find out more about here.
The Purge films have been global box-office successes, earning nearly $320 million total for the series while the budget for each film was $10 million or less, per Box Office Mojo. DeMonaco told CinemaBlend about his plans for the fourth film: “I would actually go back and I would try to talk about how it all started. That seems the natural next chapter in this, is to say, ‘Alright, we’ve done this trilogy. We see how it got to this point of someone trying to end it—this presidential figure. Now let’s go back and see how the f**k all this came about.” DeMonaco added, “How did this country get to a place where we were now accepting this kind of atrocity, this terrible thing, each year? I think there’s something interesting in that.”
Obviously, the poster below all too closely resembles Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” hats. Is DeMonaco hinting at something here in regards to our current president? The film arrives in theaters just in time for America’s birthday on July 4.
