Moviefone Editorial

Tag: the-purge

  • ‘Jackpot!’ Exclusive Interview: Director Paul Feig

    JdTsGPtr

    Premiering globally on Prime Video beginning August 15th is the new action-comedy ‘Jackpot!’, which was directed by Paul Feig (‘Bridesmaids’, ‘A Simple Favor’) and stars Awkwafina (‘The Little Mermaid’), John Cena (‘The Suicide Squad’), and Simu Liu (‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’).

    Related Article: Director Paul Feig Talks Netflix’s ‘The School for Good and Evil’

    'Jackpot!' director Paul Feig.
    ‘Jackpot!’ director Paul Feig.

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with acclaimed director Paul Feig about his work on ‘Jackpot!’, his first reaction to the screenplay, making a comedic version of ‘The Purge’, his casting process, working with Awkwafina and John Cena, and executing the action sequences.

    You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interview.

    Director Paul Feig, John Cena, and Simu Liu in 'Jackpot!'.
    (L to R) Director Paul Feig, John Cena, and Simu Liu in ‘Jackpot!’. Credit: Image Courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios. Copyright: @ Amazon Content Services LLC.

    Moviefone: To begin with, can you talk about your first reaction to the screenplay and the themes you wanted to explore with this movie?

    Paul Feig: I mean, the very first time I was told about the screenplay and sent it, I looked at the title page, it said, ‘Grand Theft Lotto’. I thought, this is stupid, and I put it down and didn’t read it. Then it was my producing partner, Laura Fisher, who called me up and said, “I just read that script and it’s super funny. You should read it.” The minute, I got 40 pages in, it was just like, I must do this. Because I love physical comedy. Jackie Chan is a huge hero of mine. I’ve always wanted to make a Jackie Chan level physical action comedy. I like the message of it because even though on its surface it appears to be a very dystopian, sort of negative commentary on mankind, I find that it’s not. I find that by the time you get to the end of the movie, you find out there’s more people who would not participate in something as insane as this as there are. So, it’s really Nora’s world through this, she’s only surrounded by the people who’ve chosen to join this lotto and kill her. But then by the end you learn, oh no, this is not most of the world. So, I think it’s a very uplifting movie in the end.

    Murray Hill and Dolly De Leon in 'Jackpot!'.
    (L to R) Murray Hill and Dolly De Leon in ‘Jackpot!’. Credit: Image Courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios. Copyright: @ Amazon Content Services LLC.

    MF: ‘Jackpot!’ is kind of like a comedic version of ‘The Purge’. Do you agree with that and is that what you were going for?

    PF: You know what, yes. I completely buy into that. I keep saying it’s ‘The Purge’ meets ‘It’s a Mad, Mad World’. But the thing about ‘The Purge’ is, getting back to the point about the lottery, nobody in ‘The Purge’ has a choice about being in the purge. Everyone must be in the purge. The lotto, the Grand Lottery, you choose to be in it. So that’s why I think we’re not… I love ‘The Purge’ movies, they are some of my favorite movies, but they’re dark.

    John Cena and Awkwafina in 'Jackpot!'.
    (L to R) John Cena and Awkwafina in ‘Jackpot!’. Credit: Image Courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios. Copyright: @ Amazon Content Services LLC.

    MF: One thing that do exceedingly well as a filmmaker is casting. Can you talk about your casting process and working with Awkwafina and John Cena on this project?

    PF: Because casting is 90% of my job. If I get that right, then everything else just falls into place behind it, if you do it right. But I was lucky enough with this movie, when the script came to me, Nora (Awkwafina) and John were already attached. So, I was given this gift of these two thoroughbreds. But again, you just don’t know. They never worked together before. You’re always kind of like, I hope these people have chemistry. But they just had it, just bucket loads of it. I found that the best people that I work with in this business, especially comedians, have a chemistry with each other, because they are like tennis players. They rely on the other person they’re playing against. So, there’s no ego between them because they know each one is making the other one look good, and they’re making each other look good at the same time. But it was a joy to see that they had chemistry times ten.

    John Cena and Katie Awkwafina in 'Jackpot!'.
    (L to R) John Cena and Katie Awkwafina in ‘Jackpot!’. Credit: Image Courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios. Copyright: @ Amazon Content Services LLC.

    MF: Finally, what was it like shooting the action sequences and working with the fight choreographers?

    PF: That’s a dream come true. I love that stuff so much. But I also have a great stunt coordinator who I work with on this for the first time, who comes from the Marvel world and does all that serious fighting. But he, like myself, is a giant Jackie Chan fan. So, we were both, when we met, it was just like, we get to do all the stuff we’ve always wanted to do. So, he’d go off and work with his stunt team, and they would kind of film on their iPhones, these sequences, and then they’d bring it to me and I’m like, “Oh, we’ll try this. Let’s try that.” We’d get in there and it would like kids in a candy store. I’m like, “What if he ties her onto his back?” He’s like, “Yeah, we can do that.” So, we just plussed and plussed and plussed it all up.

    46LVyKFN6m9N7Kt3rP8hj6

    What is the plot of ‘Jackpot!”?

    In the future, a ‘Grand Lottery’ has been newly established in California – the catch: kill the winner before sundown to legally claim their multi-billion-dollar jackpot. When Katie Kim (Awkwafina) moves to Los Angeles, she mistakenly finds herself with the winning ticket. Desperate to survive the hordes of jackpot hunters, she reluctantly joins forces with amateur lottery protection agent Noel Cassidy (John Cena) who will do everything in his power to get her to sundown in exchange for a piece of her prize. However, Noel must face off with his slick rival Louis Lewis (Simu Liu), who also seeks to collect Katie’s commission at all costs.

    Who is in the cast of ‘Jackpot!’?

    'Jackpot!' premieres on Prime Video August 15th.
    ‘Jackpot!’ premieres on Prime Video August 15th.

    Other Paul Feig Movies:

    Buy Paul Feig Movies on Amazon

     

  • Frank Grillo Talks ‘A Day to Die’

    Frank Grillo in car
    Frank Grillo in ‘A Day to Die’

    Opening in select theaters and On Demand beginning March 4th is the new action movie ‘A Day to Die,’ which stars Bruce Willis (‘Die Hard,’ ‘Pulp Fiction’), Frank Grillo (‘The Purge: Anarchy,’ ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’), and Kevin Dillon (‘The Doors,’ ‘Entourage’).

    Directed by Wes Miller (‘Hell on the Border’), the movie centers on disgraced parole officer Connor (Dillon), who is indebted to a local gang leader (Leon Robinson) and forced to pull off a series of dangerous drug heists with his former partner, Mason (Grillo). They have twelve hours to steal the $2 million dollars he owes, rescue his kidnapped pregnant wife (Brooke Butler), and settle a score with the city’s corrupt police chief (Willis), who is working with the gang leader and double-crossed him years ago.

    Actor Frank Grillo has been working professionally on television and in the movies for over thirty years! The extremely talented actor has appeared in such groundbreaking TV programs as ‘The Shield,’ and ‘Prison Break,’ and in a series of popular movies including ‘Minority Report,’ ‘Edge of Darkness,’ ‘Warrior,’ ‘The Grey,’ ‘End of Watch,’ ‘Zero Dark Thirty,’ ‘Gangster Squad,’ and the recent ‘Copshop.’

    But to most audiences, he is probably best known for two roles, playing Sergeant Leo Barnes in ‘The Purge: Anarchy’ and ‘The Purge: Election Year,’ and portraying Brock “Crossbones” Rumlow in the MCU movies ‘Captain America: The Winter Solider,’ ‘Captain America: Civil War,’ and ‘Avengers: Endgame.’

    Grillo is the real deal when it comes to action, as he holds a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and is a former boxer. He is also no stranger to co-staring in a film with Bruce Willis, as ‘A Day to Die’ marks the fourth movie they have made together after ‘Lay the Favorite,’ ‘Cosmic Sin,’ and ‘Reprisal.’

    Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking exclusively with Frank Grillo about his work on ‘A Day to Die.’ The actor spoke candidly about the new movie, reuniting with Bruce Willis, their characters, working with Kevin Dillon for the first time, how seriously he takes action-sequences, the importance of safety on the set, the trajectory of his own career, and the possibility of returning to the MCU.

    Grillo and Dillon with guns
    (L to R) Frank Grillo, Kevin Dillon and Leon Robinson in ‘A Day to Die’

    Here is what Frank Grillo had to say about ‘A Day to Die.’

    Moviefone: To begin with, how did you get involved with this project?

    Frank Grillo: Well, my buddy Wes Miller, called me up and said, “I’m sending you the script.” It was in my wheelhouse, and I really love Wes, and always want to support him and do whatever I can to help him make movies. Then he brought in Bruce, who’s a dear friend. And who knows how many more movies Bruce has in him? So, I thought, let me go and have some fun with him.

    MF: This is the forth movie that you have made with Bruce Willis. What has your experience been like working with him over the course of these four films?

    FG: There’s a few guys in Hollywood that are in the stratosphere as far as movie stars are concerned, and Bruce Willis is one of those guys. But, I think at 64 he’s going to be phasing out of this stuff. But it’s Bruce Willis, you know what I mean? I got to work with guys like Bruce, Liam Neeson, Sylvester Stallone, John Malkovich, and they’re in another league.. It’s just fun to work with them, hang out with them, and listen to the stories. I’m glad he’s a pal. He’s a dear friend. Like I said, I think he’s phasing out of doing these movies at this point.

    A lot of these guys are not at the height of their career, obviously, but they are such a big draw. There’s a nostalgic draw to these guys because they remind us of a time when movies were big, and you showed up for the movie star. I think we really show up for the event now with movies, especially that Marvel’s taken over the world. It’s fun to be around them. I just like absorbing their energy, and I’m at the age too where I’m old school, so I can relate to them and they can relate to me. As opposed to the younger generation, which it’s a whole different ball of wax.

    MF: Can you talk about your character Mason’s relationship to Alston, the character that Bruce Willis plays. It seems like Mason both admires and resents him at the same time, is that correct?

    FG: Yeah. I think as I recall, that’s exactly where it was. I mean, they were two guys who were peers more than anything. There was a mutual respect, as there is with anyone, even with adversaries, especially sometimes. I always use the film ‘Heat’ as a template with a lot of these movies. You look at the relationships, and De Niro and Pacino were on opposite ends of the spectrum, but when they sat down, you understood that they respected each other.

    Bruce Willis with a tie
    Bruce Willis in ‘A Day to DIe.’

    MF: Can you talk about your approach to playing Mason?

    FG: He is a guy who, look, nobody ever wants to be the bad guy. You don’t start out in life trying to end up being the bad guy. So, you approach it with, it’s a set of circumstances that now dictate this guy’s behavior, and why he has to do what he has to do. I know a lot of this harkens back to guys who are in the military who have come out, and just have not been treated very well, and have to do what they have to do to get by.

    I have a lot of friends that served overseas, special forces, that were really important at one point in their life in what they were doing. Then, they come back here and they have to do jobs, and they’re not respected here the way they were. Or they’re not really using their intelligence and their abilities, what they trained their whole life to do. So, they find different ways to make a living, and make up for what they think they’re not getting.

    MF: That was an interesting aspect to the film. Is that a theme that spoke to you, because as you said, you have friends who have been through that?

    FG: Yeah. It’s that whole thing of what this country does with our veterans. We tend to push them to the side. Many times it’s degrading and it’s embarrassing for these guys to come back here, and just not be treated the way they should be treated and taken care of.

    MF: Can you talk about why Mason is so willing to help Connor in this situation? Is it because they have a deep bond from their time serving in the military together?

    FG: Yeah. That’s what it is. It’s one for all, and all for one. When a brother is down and needs help, you don’t worry about your own self-preservation, that’s not what these guys do. They’d all be dead if that was the case. If one is down, you go in, and you need to take care of whatever you need to take care of to save that person. That’s what this was about, it’s like, we’re here to die for you.

    MF: Tell us about working with Kevin Dillon. Had you ever met or worked with him before making this movie?

    FG: I haven’t. I’ve always been a fan of Kevin from ‘Entourage,’ and some other things. When they first mentioned his name, I was like, “Wow, I don’t see that. I don’t see Kevin as that guy.” I almost said, “Is this going to work?” Then Wes said, “Why don’t just go hang out with him, and talk to him for a while.” I went and sat down with him, and I thought, it’s cool to go against type here, and not have the basic, video game, tough guy, paramilitary dude, because Kevin’s not that guy. It worked really well, I think. I believed him.

    Kevin Dillon blue shirt
    Kevin Dillon in ‘A Day to Die.’

    MF: It’s interesting you say that, because if they had cast you as Connor, it would have been a totally different movie.

    FG: They wanted to, they asked me to do it. I only worked on the movie for a couple days because I was doing another film, and I really wanted to be able to help Wes out. So, I wanted to go in there and do as good as I could in the short amount of time that I had. But they asked me to play that role, and for me, that’s like falling off a log. It’s so easy to do that, and you expect that from me. It’s better that Kevin did it, because it’s a different way to cast the movie.

    MF: You have a background in boxing and martial arts, and I know you have a lot of experience with weapons training as well. With a project like this, where you have so many action sequences, how involved do you get with the stunt coordinators? Do you help choreograph your own action scenes?

    FG: Well, I just finished a film, and I’m about to go do a film, which is like a ‘Bourne Identity,’ and yeah, I’m very involved. So, in anything that I do that I’m on screen, I choreograph with the stunt coordinator, and who’s ever on the fight team. So, it’s my dance, and I’m very specific about how I want to look in the film. I never want to look cinematic, I like to be very authentic with all that stuff, with the action and with the fighting specifically, because it’s a whole language unto itself.

    I watch movies where there’s these crazy fights, but I don’t believe any of the fights. It’s just like when I watch bad acting, and I don’t believe the acting. So, to come back around for the answer, I’m very involved in all of it, including the weapons that I hold.

    MF: I would imagine safety is a priority to you as well on the set, is that right?

    FG: Oh my God. Yes! Before any of this happened, the unfortunate events with Alec Baldwin. I mean, if you knew the people that I’ve worked with, you could ask them. I am a maniac about it. I mean, safety to me is paramount. Not only for myself and watching out that I don’t get hurt, because my livelihood is on the line, but for other people. I won’t allow it.

    I’ll take the brunt of the producer’s anger. I say to them all time, blame me, let them come to my trailer. I’ll have the conversation. Usually they acquiesce, because as we’ve seen, a lot of these movies are low budget, and there’s less time than you actually need to do it, that’s when people get hurt. The other side of that is, I’ve done four Marvel movies where you have all the time in the world, and all the prep. I act as if every movie is a Marvel movie, because they do it right.

    Kevin Dillon with gun
    Kevin Dillon in ‘A Day to DIe.’

    MF: Now that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is introducing the idea of the multiverse and different variants of different characters, as seen in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and the upcoming ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,’ what are the chances of you returning to the MCU is a different version of Brock “Crossbones” Rumlow?

    FG: Oh, listen, I would go. I have three sons, one of them is 14, who is a fanatic about Marvel, and in comic book movies in general. But I always say this, I would jump at the chance to go and play with those guys and do anything. For me, anything I can do that my kid digs, is something I want to do. Listen, it’s helped my career immensely, globally, and I’m so appreciative of it. Anytime they call, I’ll pick up the phone and go.

    MF: As an actor, you must have learned so much just from being a part of the “Marvel Machine.” Are you impressed with what Kevin Feige and Marvel Studios have been able to accomplish with this series over the years?

    FG: I mean, I started out in ‘Captain America: Winter Soldier,’ when Marvel was just getting going. Kevin Feige was just another guy who was a comic book geek and was running the studio. They hired these goofy guys called the Russo Brothers, and lo and behold, that was Marvel. So, when I went and did that little piece on Avengers: Endgame, I was there for a couple weeks. I was like, wow, look at this. Kevin Feige has emerged as one of, if not the smartest brain in Hollywood, I think. His track record is unparalleled. He’s the Tom Brady of the movie business.

    MF: Finally, what projects do you have coming up that your fans can look forward to?

    FG: I did ‘Lamborghini – The Legend.’ I’ve got a terrific movie coming out called ‘Little Dixie,’ which I did with John Schwab, who I did two other movies with. I have a film coming out with Juliet Binoche and Morgan Freeman, ‘Paradise Highway.’

    I’ve got a few movies coming out, and I probably have six movies that I’m going to go do. People laugh at me all the time, and I know sometimes even online, they make fun of me. It’s like, I like to work! I’m not curating my career. I’m not Brad Pitt. I’m not getting the best of the best of the best, where I can pick one, make $20 million and wait till next year.

    It’s like, I make a good living, but I’ve got to work. I’ve got to hustle. So that’s why my name is in the trades every third week. People think my God, don’t you ever stop? I’m like, I do stop. But I also do love to work. I mean, I don’t know how much longer I’m going to be able to do this, that people are going to be hiring me. So, I love to work. I really enjoy it. It’s the most satisfying thing that I do aside from raising my children. I’ll do it as much as I want.

    I’m always curious how other people are judging me and asking me why I work so much. I’m like, what a silly question. A, I need to make a living. B, I love it, and I don’t consider it work. So, actors wait their whole life to get into a position where there’s a number of jobs in front of them. Again, I don’t know when it’s going to stop, but it’s going to stop. Then I can go, I remember when I used to work all the time, that was fun.

    z5AqlEh1Mz6BMaaCHezhc6
  • ‘The Purge 5’ Sets 2020 Release Date

    ‘The Purge 5’ Sets 2020 Release Date

    Universal Pictures

    The upcoming fifth — and likely final — installment of the horror franchise “The Purge” finally has a release date, with Universal announcing that fans should prepare themselves to be scared silly next summer.

    The studio revealed this week that “The Purge 5” (the flick does not yet have an official title) is due to hit theaters on July 10, 2020. The previous four films in the franchise — 2013’s “The Purge” (starring Ethan Hawke and Lena Headey), 2014’s “The Purge: Anarchy,” 2016’s “The Purge: Election Year,” and 2018 prequel “The First Purge” — were all written by James DeMonaco, who told Entertainment Weekly last year that he was planning on penning the fifth as well.

    According to DeMonaco, this flick could mark the end of “The Purge” saga on the big screen (no word yet on the future of the “Purge” television series, which airs on USA network). As he explained in his interview with EW, DeMonaco said he already had an outline for the film sketched out, and thought it would be “a great way” to close out the series.

    “We want to end it all, I think, in this one, and I’m very excited,” the filmmaker told EW. “When I came up with the idea and pitched it to everybody, they seemed psyched, and I think it will be a really cool ending, how we take this one home.”

    Fans will get to see DeMonaco’s vision unfold for themselves next year.

    [via: Entertainment Weekly]

  • ‘The Purge 5’ Planned as Final Film in Franchise: ‘It Will Be a Really Cool Ending’

    ‘The Purge 5’ Planned as Final Film in Franchise: ‘It Will Be a Really Cool Ending’

    The First Purge
    Universal Pictures

    Plot twist: “The Purge” plans to kill itself in the final purge.

    James DeMonaco wrote the scripts for all four “Purge” movies to date, and directed the first three films. There’s also now a TV series on “The Purge.”

    DeMonaco told Entertainment Weekly he does see an end in sight for the film franchise with the next fifth movie:

    “I have it in my head. I think I’m going to write it. I think it’s a great way to end it all. We want to end it all, I think, in this one, and I’m very excited. When I came up with the idea and pitched it to everybody, they seemed psyched, and I think it will be a really cool ending, how we take this one home.”

    This all started with “The Purge” in 2013. Worldwide, it made $89.3 million off an estimated $3 million budget. Studios looooove that kind of profit margin, so of course they made more movies. And they kept making money.

    The second film, “The Purge: Anarchy,” was released in 2014 and made $111.9 million worldwide. The third movie, “The Purge: Election Year” made $118.6 million in 2016. And “The First Purge” — which just came out this past summer, directed by Gerard McMurray — made $136.2 million worldwide. That film made almost an equal amount at the domestic and foreign box offices, whereas the other films tended to make a bit more at the domestic box office.

    Most of today’s money is made in the international markets, and there’s clearly still an interest in this franchise. Sure, the reviews have been terrible, but they have been terrible for all four films — including low audience reaction scores — and people just kept showing up.

    Will you show up for the final purge, whenever it begins?

    Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook.

  • ‘The Purge 4’ Will Be Set During the First Purge

    The fourth movie in “The Purge” horror franchise is going back the beginning.

    “The Purge: The Island” will be set during the very first Purge, writer/director James DeMonaco told Vulture.

    “It takes place on Staten Island which is cool — the first experimental Purge,” he said. “Next July 4, it’ll be coming.”

    He added, “Unlike the characters we’ve met in the ‘Purge’ universe so far, these folks won’t be used to the annual bout of violence and some of them won’t even believe it’s a threat.”

    DeMonaco teased more details about the movie, which is intended to be very topical to the current political climate. “The Purge 4” will explore how such a horrific event ever came to pass.

    “I was wondering how you get people to stay for the first Purge, and what they do is they start monetizing it. People from Staten Island can easily go to Brooklyn for the evening, so what they do is start promising very decent sums of money for the very poor people in the neighborhood,” he said.

    “It becomes a monetization of murder and violence, incentivizing killing and keeping people around for them to be victims. So you see the inception of how grotesque the idea of the Purge is, the manipulation upon the society.”

  • ‘The Purge’ Is Becoming a TV Series

    Lock those doors! “The Purge” is coming to your TV. The “one night where murder is legal” series will air on both USA and Syfy, Deadline reports.

    No further details, including whether it will feature regular characters fighting to survive the night or if each episode might be a self-contained night of terror.

    And having a TV series doesn’t mean the film franchise is over: The next “Purge” feature will be released by Universal in summer 2018. The third film, “The Purge: Election Year,” was the highest-grossing yet, with $79 million in domestic box office.

    Blumhouse founder Cold Case Files” on A&E and “12 Deadly Days” for YouTube Red. Also look for an HBO adaptation of “Sharp Objects” (by the author of “Gone Girl”), which will star Amy Adams.

    Blum told Deadline, “Over the past few years, we have been working to build Blumhouse Television into an independent studio so we can have the autonomy to work with the best storytellers and give them freedom to create the best dark genre programming. It is a dream that day is here. Julian and his team at ITV are remarkable partners and we can’t wait to kick things off with “The Purge” and “Secure and Hold” (a limited series about Fox News’ Roger Ailes). We are excited that with the launch of this new studio, we are expanding our partnership with NBCUniversal by growing ‘The Purge’ franchise into a television series.”

  • Here’s Why ‘Tarzan’ Beat Expectations at the Box Office

    When they hear the word “vine,” today’s moviegoers are more likely to think of short social-media videos than of jungle hero Tarzan.

    No wonder box office analysts expected “The Legend of Tarzan” to be a costly flop, along the lines of “The Lone Ranger” a few years ago. It’s based on an ancient franchise that modern-day viewers don’t seem to remember, much less care about. Unlike “Lone Ranger,” the new “Tarzan” didn’t even have the saving grace of an A-lister like Johnny Depp in the cast. So predictions for the expensive tentpole’s opening weekend were modest: it would gross between $20 and $25 million and debut in fourth place, behind returning hit “Finding Dory” and newcomers “The Purge: Election Year” and “The BFG.”

    But “Tarzan” surprised everyone by doing nearly twice as well as expected, with an estimated $38.1 million through Sunday, with a second-place finish well ahead of “Purge” (an estimated $30.9 million) and “BFG” (an estimated $19.6 million). While those figures are better than expected, Warners should hold off on breaking out the champagne: “Tarzan” will need all the overseas money it can get if it wants to recoup its rumored $180 million budget. Here are some reasons why it was premature to count Tarzan out, and why the movie’s perceived weaknesses were actually strengths.

    1. The Character Is the Star
    It doesn’t matter that Alexander Skarsgård isn’t a box office draw. If the movie looks good enough, viewers don’t care who plays Tarzan — if the A- CinemaScore is any indication.

    2. Female Appeal
    That’s not to slight Skarsgård, who looks pretty amazing wearing nothing but a loincloth period-appropriate chino shorts. Also, he can act, which is good for that brooding quality every Tarzan needs. Did we mention his six-pack? That’s one way “Tarzan” differs from other long-enduring franchises: by necessity, it offers eye-candy for women.

    Indeed, there was a slight female majority (51 percent) among the “Tarzan” opening-weekend audience. Indeed, all this weekend’s new movies had strong female appeal, with “BFG” drawing an audience that was 54 percent women and girls and “Purge” playing to a horror audience that’s traditionally mostly female.

    3. Fun for All (er, Most) Ages
    Yes, there’s a lot more of a nostalgia market than a youth market for “Tarzan.” Some 55 percent of the audience was over 35. But what else is going to bring older adults into theaters in the summer? Not last week’s “Independence Day: Resurgence,” which seemed to hawk a spitball of alien slime all over people’s memories of the original 1996 movie. Speaking of which…

    4. Weak Competition
    “Tarzan” also pleased action fans who were disappointed with “Resurgence.” (Which, by the way, dropped 60 percent from last week to an estimated $16.5 million to finish in fifth place.) There was no way it was going to beat “Finding Dory” (which pulled in another estimated $41.9 million from Friday to Sunday, with an estimated $50 million over the holiday). Surprisingly, “Tarzan” outperformed fellow family film “The BFG.”

    The Steven Spielberg kiddie pic (above) came in way below predictions, unable to crack even the $20 million mark. (Then again, it was also competing against “Dory,” for the same young viewers.) It will be one of Spielberg’s biggest flops ever. With “Tarzan” locking up the older viewers, the vine-swinger’s only real competition came from “Purge,” which did a little better than expected. But it opened on just 2,796 screens, compared to 3,561 for “Tarzan.”

    5. Execution
    There’s an elephant’s-graveyard of previous “Tarzan” reboots over the last 40 years, with all but the Disney animated feature turning out to be campy failures. For a live-action “Tarzan” to work, it has to be directed with some real forethought and craftsmanship. David Yates isn’t the flashiest director or the one with the most personal style, but he knows how to handle big-budget, occasionally bleak blockbuster franchise films, as he proved on the final four “Harry Potter” movies.

    “Tarzan” may have been a particularly tricky assignment that required someone as no-muss-no-fuss as Yates. The franchise’s white-savior narrative doesn’t really fly anymore, but the new script by Craig Brewer and Adam Cozad tries to remedy that by adding an awful lot of historical and political backstory. That’s a heavy burden for a summer movie hero who doesn’t wear shoes and whose signature line of dialogue is a wordless yodel. Few critics seemed to think Yates pulled it off, but audiences clearly thought he did.

    Though did they like it enough? The movie will have to gross about $720 million worldwide to break even. As much of an overperformer as “Tarzan” has been so far, there seems little chance of passing that milestone and turning a profit. Still, there’s two weeks to go before “Ghostbusters” goes after general audiences and nostalgia-minded viewers, and three weeks before “Star Trek Beyond” becomes the action movie of choice.

    So “Tarzan” has some time to grab the lion’s share of the marketplace. After that, it’s welcome to the jungle.
    %Slideshow-407993%

  • New ‘Purge: Election Year’ Trailer: Keep America Great!

    The Purge Election Year“I purge because staying in is un-American.”

    The purge is back for another round of brutal, murderous anarchy in “The Purge: Election Year.” The trailer is eerily well-timed to hit right in the middle of a crazy real-life election cycles and conjures up a very familiar slogan with its own: “Keep America Great.”

    The set-up is similar to the previous two horror hits — it’s time for the purge, 12 hours of free-for-all crime sprees. But this could be the last purge ever, since presidential frontrunner Charlene Roan (Elizabeth Mitchell) has vowed to abolish it for good. But shady factions within the government want to keep the purge, and Charlene and her security chief (Frank Grillo) are forced out into the purge to fend for themselves.“The Purge” has become one of the better action-horror franchises in recent years, and “Election Year” looks intriguing. Its parallels to current events look to make it even more arresting. After all, this horror could become real.

    “The Purge: Election Year” opens in theaters July 1.

    Want more stuff like this? Like us on Facebook.

    %Slideshow-379223%