Why The Purge 3 Doesn’t Need Frank Grillo – Even Though He’s Really, Really Awesome
We reported earlier today that there’s a possibility The Purge: Anarchy star Frank Grillo may be returning for 2016’s The Purge 3, which needless to say got the horror community talking.
Grillo, a living, breathing action star, was hands down the best thing about The Purge franchise’s first sequel, channeling his inner Frank Castle for the role of ‘Sergeant.’ A badass dude with big ass guns and an equally badass car, Sergeant was on a revenge-fueled mission in the film, the role fully cementing Grillo’s status as one of cinema’s great ass-kickers.
Though the thought of Grillo reprising the role and kicking some more ass on the big screen is one that admittedly wets my whistle, I can’t help but feel that bringing the character back for The Purge 3 is a bad idea. If Sergeant returns, that means the film will in some way continue the storyline from Anarchy, which is something this franchise quite simply need not do.
Unique in the world of franchises, The Purge has established itself as one comprised of totally standalone stories, essentially making it an anthology series about the titular Purge night. Anarchy, for example, had no direct connection to the first film, making it feel like a refreshing cinematic experience, rather than a continuation of something we had already seen before.
Much the same way FX has been doing with “American Horror Story,” The Purge has thus far branded itself as a series that reinvents itself every year, using the basic concept to tell different stories that make different statements about humanity and explore different facets of the bizarre “holiday.” And that’s pretty cool, as sticking to that tradition will likely prevent the franchise from the inherent curse of getting stale.
Just as the story from the first film was neatly wrapped up in the end, so too was Sergeant’s story in Anarchy, and I see little reason to draw that out or milk Grillo’s sheer and utter badassery for another film. As much as I love Grillo, I’d much prefer another standalone story set on Purge night, and I can’t help but hope that the franchise continues to reinvent itself with each passing year.
But that’s just my two cents, which today’s news compelled me to spew. I encourage you to throw yours into the comments section below!
James DeMonaco is set to write and direct The Purge 3, with a planned release date of July 1, 2016.
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