10 Movies Inspired By Things NOBODY Expected
8. The Director's Road Rage Incident - The Purge
The concept for 2013's The Purge is one of those genius ideas that just about every screenwriter wishes they'd come up with, but in the case of the film's writer-director James DeMonaco, it was actually born out of a violent incident itself.
During a 2014 interview with Complex to promote sequel The Purge: Anarchy, DeMonaco revealed that the seeds of The Purge were sewn following a road rage incident, where DeMonaco and his wife were cut off on the highway by a drunk driver.
The ensuing confrontation led to a fistfight between DeMonaco and the other driver, with the cops eventually being called.
Afterwards, the filmmaker's enraged wife said to him, "Wouldn't it be great if we all had one free one a year?," as in, every person was allowed to kill someone each year.
DeMonaco initially told his wife, "That’s so f**ked-up, honey," but the idea stuck with him, and was built upon for the very concept of The Purge, where for one night per year all crime, including murder, is legal.
Though the filmmaker credits his wife with the creation of The Purge, he insists that she's a "sweet woman" regardless.