The Purge will commence for at least one more annual, government-sanctioned night of anarchy on the small screen. Blumhouse Productions and USA Network have announced that the TV series based on the popular horror movie franchise will be given a second season. The announcement of a season 2 pickup comes ahead of the show's season 1 finale, which is set to air tonight.
The series takes place in the same universe as the movie franchise, which was created by James DeMonaco. The Purge centers on an annual holiday created by the government where all crime, even murder, is legal for a 12-hour-period. While initially pitched as a way to decrease crime, the series and the movies have played up the idea of class separation between the rich and poor. Chris McCumber, president of Entertainment Networks for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, had this to say about the season 2 renewal.
"USA Network is so proud to be the television home for the iconic franchise The Purge. The partnership and creative trust of Jason Blum and everyone at Blumhouse Television and Universal Pictures ensured The Purge's successful transition from film to TV, and along with Universal Cable Productions, we look forward to digging even deeper into the mythology in season two."
Blumhouse Productions has had a tremendous amount of success in recent years making small-budget horror movies that turn a nice profit. The ones that prove to be successful are quite often turned into franchises. The Purge has been easily one of their most successful franchises to date, with the four movies, including this year's prequel The First Purge, having grossed a combined $456 million worldwide. It's also the first one to make the transition to TV so far. Jason Blum, head of Blumhouse and executive producer of the series, had this to say in a statement.
"James DeMonaco has done it again: The propulsive and compelling story he created for season one of The Purge truly resonated with audiences in a significant way. We are thrilled to embark on season two and can't wait to bring more of James' vision to USA and fans of The Purge."
In addition to his work as writer/director of the movies, James DeMonaco serves as an executive producer on the series. Thomas Kelly, Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, Andrew Form and Sebastian K. Lemercier also serve as producers. The Purge is currently the networks' number one rated drama series, averaging 2.3 million viewers per episode.
James DeMonaco recently indicated that the next movie will end the franchise. At least on the big screen. If new season is also successful, it wouldn't be surprising to see the small screen version continue for a while longer. At the present time, it isn't clear if they will bring in a new cast and tell a totally different story, or if they will utilize the same cast and follow their story once again on another Purge night next season. Blumhouse and USA Network also haven't indicated when we can expect to see The Purge season 2 debut.