(Note: This post contains spoilers for “The First Purge.”)
Now four movies in, “The Purge” is clearly a full-on franchise. But does that mean the latest installment, “The First Purge,” takes a page from the Marvel Cinematic Universe playbook by teasing its next installment with a post-credits scene?
The answer to that question is, yes: “The First Purge” carries a mid-credits scene — although it’s not a teaser for another film. It’s actually an ad for a TV show.
In “The First Purge,” the story dials back to first-ever night in which all crime in the U.S. is legal — including murder. The film focuses on how the Purge first took hold in the fictionalized version of America, including the election of the extremist “New Founding Fathers of America” political party, who initiate the event as a “sociological experiment” taking place on Staten Island.
So back to that mid-credits scene. Blumhouse is spinning off “The Purge” into a 10-part TV show on USA, which airs on Sept. 4. The teaser trailer shows a man in a workshop, slowly machining a piece of metal. As the teaser wears on, we realize that the unidentified person is creating a terrifying mask — preparation for the yearly 12-hour period of lawlessness.
The teaser comes in the middle of the credits, but it’s only one; there’s nothing after the credits finish rolling.
Producer Jason Blum has said the series will cover more than just the Purge night, like the movies generally do. It’ll also give an impression of what’s up with characters in the U.S. governed by the New Founding Fathers on the other 364 days of the year.
That fits with the teaser, which is about preparation for the Purge, instead of the Purge itself. It suggests the TV show will answer the question of how people who are capable of murder — and even craving the chance to commit it — can manage to exist in a society for the rest of the year.
You can check out the first trailer USA released for the TV show below.