Characters sheet for The Purge, The Purge: Anarchy, The Purge: Election Year, The First Purge, and The Forever Purge.

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The New Founding Fathers (N.F.F.A.)

In General

The New Founding Fathers

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/nffa.png

Blessed be our New Founding Fathers for letting us Purge and cleanse our souls. Blessed be America, a nation reborn.

Played By: Raymond J. Barry, David Aaron Baker, Dale Dye, Michael Steven Swanson, Gary Roscoe

Ax-Crazy: All of them except Roseland and Danzinger are psychotic snobs with an overwhelming desire to kill poor people out of nothing but irrational hatred and sadism, and even the more straight-faced of the band, like Big Daddy, are disturbingly cavalier when it comes to ripping apart any civilians they catch in their crosshairs.
A Nazi by Any Other Name: Their methods, like sending out death squads to kill for them, their authoritarian methods and their habit of orchestrating purges to act as pogroms against poor people definitely makes one think that they’re a bunch of violent fascists at heart.
Big Brother Is Watching You: Hinted throughout the first movie that they operate on this.
Corrupt Politician: Dear God, yes, although it seems most citizens are blind to this.
Didn't Think This Through: The Forever Purge retroactively reveals the entire Purge as a concept to be a serious case of this. As it turns out, creating a culture where murder is portrayed as perfectly fine for even a single night a year would turn a ton of people into psychopaths. And eventually those psychopaths aren't going to be content with having just a single night to release their violent urges.
Evil Old Folks: All of them seem to be at least fifty (aside from James); Roan seems to be the youngest visible member of the Senate.
Greater-Scope Villain: They're the entire reason these events are happening and why there are people going out on crime sprees. With each film, it becomes clearer that they have a more selfish, ruthlessly pragmatic motive. It's also revealed they send out Death Squads to round up the numbers.
Hoist by His Own Petard: As of The Forever Purge, they are ultimately done by the Purge, which they themselves created.
Karma Houdini: Invoked by themselves. When setting up the rules of the Purge, they explicitly stated that they are exempt from being attacked by purgers so as to ensure they don't wind up undoing themselves.
Karma Houdini Warranty:
- A foolish mistake they make in the third film - revoking the part of the law that protects government officials in order to assassinate Roan - ends up causing the warranty to run out.
- This happens to them again in the fifth film. With the Purge going out of control, they are quickly overthrown by the Ever After Purgers and are also scapegoated due to the situation going From Bad to Worse.
Kill the Poor: The true motive of the Purge was to essentially purge the poor people for fun while keeping the rich in power. However some members still believe it to be Necessarily Evil due to it lowering the poverty levels, and thus supposedly saving the country from bankruptcy.
Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: They claim that the Purge is to relieve people of their violent urges, but it's nothing more to satisfy their sadism and elitism. They even lie about the Purge working just to encourage more people to commit murder.
Orcus on His Throne: Played straight in the first two films, but averted in the third, where Caleb decides to execute Roan personally. Not the wisest choice, as he forgets that the rules protecting him have been revoked.
Pragmatic Villainy: After the Ever After Purgers make their appearance, the NFFA send their militaries out to contain them and publicly announce the opening of Canada and Mexico's borders for all refugees to seek shelter in. This is less out of seeing the error of their ways and more them trying to regain some sense of control while the country they run quickly falls into anarchy. It doesn't save them in the end, as they get violently deposed.
President Evil: Elections are still held in the United States, so they qualify; whether their elections were rigged or not isn't known.
Politically Incorrect Villain: They set up The Purge to massacre poor people both For the Evulz and in a severely warped display of elitism. Their death squads are also explicitly shown to primarily target minority communities.
Villain with Good Publicity: Played straight in the first movie, but in the second and third it seems their approval ratings are starting to wane, seeing as a member of La Résistance has gotten as far as Presidential candidate.

Arlo Sabian

Played By: Patch Darragh

Big Bad: He's the main dude of the NFFA featured in the fourth film (which is a Prequel) who starts off the Purge's murderous tendencies.
Karma Houdini: Doesn't receive any form of justice for sending mercenaries to kill folks in Staten Island. In fact, he also gets away with ordering Doc May's murder by his men.

Caleb Warrens

Played By: Raymond J. Barry

Asshole Victim: He's a racist, sexist elitist. His eventual death is well deserved.
Big Bad: Of the third film, as the leader of the New Founding Fathers.
Big Bad Ensemble: With Minister Edwidge Owens.
Boom, Headshot!: Dies to one of these courtesy of Marcos and a sniper rifle.
Establishing Character Moment: After watching one of Roan's anti-Purge speeches on television, he turns it off, stares silently at his colleagues for a few seconds, then goes on a profanity-filled, racist, misogynistic tirade about how "there isn't enough to go around" and that poor people should be gotten rid of for the "crime" of simply not being rich. With less than a minute of screen-time, Warrens shows himself to be an elitist asshole whose Karmic Death can't come fast enough.
Greater-Scope Villain: He's responsible for the series' events, and the leader of the NFFA.
The Sociopath: He has absolutely no empathy for his victims, is extraordinarily manipulative and is sadistic and vicious to the point of being outright Ax-Crazy, as his attempt at killing Roan with a gleeful Slasher Smile shows disturbingly well.

Thomas Roseland

Tommy Roseland

Played By: David Aaron Baker

Blatant Lies: Claims the NFFA's amendment scrapping protection for politicians is in response to the public's view the Purge only targets the poor, when in truth, it's a cover to allow the NFFA to discreetly assassinate Senator Charlie Roan rather than risk her ousting them from power.
Boom, Headshot!: Dies to one of these courtesy of Marcos, while trying to finish off a helpless Charlie.
Mouth of Sauron: Serves as the NFFA's Press Secretary.

NFFA Loyalists & Allies

Minister Edwidge Owens

Played By: Kyle Secor

Affably Evil: Owens is a homicidal maniac, but is a genuine believer in the Purge as he sees it as a chance to commit holy sacrifice. In addition, he is charismatic and charming during his television appearances and when he presides over his congregation.
Ax-Crazy: Owens is batshit insane. He starts literally frothing at the mouth and speaking in tongues in a religious/psychotic fervor. He is dedicated to the Purge as a means of purification, slaughtering multitudes of victims in his church during a 'Purge Mass' every Purge. When everything is going to hell, Owens is noticeably praying and babbling psychotically while bullets fly around him.
Big Bad Ensemble: With the NFFA.
Cruel Mercy: He's spared from being assassinated so Roan can beat him in the election fair and square.
Even Evil Has Standards: Say one thing for Minister Owens, he isn't a hypocrite. Unlike the more opportunistic and self-serving New Founding Fathers, Owens is a fervent believer in the Purge who doesn't shrink away when the shoe is on the other foot.
Face Death with Dignity: He is very willing to be killed so Bishop can participate in the Purge.
Groin Attack: Since they can't kill him, Leo settles for giving him one of these after seeing the captives for Owens's Purge Mass.
Large Ham: He's smart enough to stay fairly restrained in his television appearances, but he devours the scenery when presiding over his congregation.
Sinister Minister: He presides over midnight mass on Purge night, during which he encourages his congregation to purge.
Strike Me Down with All of Your Hatred!: When Bishop has him at his mercy, Owens encourages him emphatically to purge. He seems downright gleeful at the prospect of being killed on Purge night. It's a rare example where this is not done out of spite or any ulterior motive - since he believes in the beauty of Purging, he genuinely wants Bishop to kill him.
Villainous Valour: An unsympathetic example, as he's so much a true believer in the Purge that would gladly and gleefully Face Death with Dignity when at Dante's mercy, until he decides to give him Cruel Mercy instead.

Harmon James

Played By: Christopher James Baker

Badass Long Robe: Escapes a slew of gunfire unharmed, & guns down two people, all while wearing a decorative baptismal robe.
Boom, Headshot!: Joe blows his brains out.
Dissonant Serenity: Completely calm, stoic, and seemingly void of emotion, until he commits the first Purging of the Mass.
Giggling Villain: The laugh that he emits when he Purges.
Mutual Kill: He fatally wounds Joe, but still gets his brains blown across the wall by Joe's last bullet.

Big Daddy

Played By: Jack Conley

Asshole Victim: Owing to him being a complete douchebag to both innocent people and Purgers, his death is very much welcoming.
BFG: He uses a mini-gun to mow innocent people and Purgers alike.
Big Bad: Of The Purge: Anarchy. He leads a NFFA-commissioned death squad.
Boom, Headshot!: He's shot through the head by Warren Grass.
Cool Shades: Even though it's night for most of the movie.
Faux Affably Evil: He's perfectly polite to Leo as he prepares to kill him.

Earl Danzinger

Played By: Terry Serpico

Affably Evil: Earl is a Neo-Nazi (or not) and ruthless murderer, but he's also genuinely A Father to His Men and it's even hinted that he's not really a fan of the Purge.
The Brute: He operates as muscle for the NFFA.
The Dragon: Leads a team of mercenaries to assassinate/capture Senator Roan for the NFFA.
Even Evil Has Standards: Despite his Undying Loyalty and likely abiding by My Country, Right or Wrong, he is also non-supportive of the Purge.
Obviously Evil: Danzinger is covered in white supremacist tattoos and is generally rather intimidating by appearance alone.
Oh, Crap!: His reaction when he hears over the radio the Crips slaughtering some of his men.
Politically Incorrect Villain: He's an open Neo-Nazi, though he could be not and only wore Nazi symbols to mess with his targets.
Punch-Clock Villain: He is simply just doing his job. After delivering the Senator to the NFFA, he and his men just sit back to ride out the Purge rather than go look for any victims.
Redemption Rejection: Given he is just a Punch-Clock Villain Just Following Orders and not a fan of the Purge, he would have just stand down and leave La Résistance and Senator Roan alone after Caleb's and most the NFFA higher-ups' deaths, but still choose to fight Leo to the death near the end out of unnecessary Undying Loyalty despite the deaths of his superiors.
Villainous Valour: He would commendably even fights Leo to the death one-on-one even after the deaths of his superiors who organized the Purge that he's no fan of.

Dr. May Updale

Played By: Marisa Tomei

Everyone Has Standards: She is the person who created the Purge, but she wanted it to be an experiment with no outside interference. As a result, she is outright pissed when the NFFA doesn't likes that Purgers are doing what people would actually do if given twelve hours to do anything illegal they can think of with no consequences (read: drug-fueled orgies) and send soldiers to start killing for the sake of what they wish to sell to the public.
Greater-Scope Villain: Downplayed. She is the one who created the whole concept of the Purge, but she is a very minor (and ultimately expendable) cog in the NFFA's machine.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: The NFFA kill her when they have no further use for her.

Chief Couper

Played By: Ethan Phillips

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He pretends to be an ally of Senator Roan, but he’s really The Mole for the NFFA.
Kill It with Fire: He meets his end when Leo blows up the safe house, killing him and everyone else inside.
The Mole: For the NFFA.
Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves: Gets blown up for his treachery.

Citizenry

Sandin Family

James

James Sandin

Played By: Ethan Hawke

The Cameo: He makes a cameo in a flashback to the preparation of the first Purge in the second season finale of the series.
Combat Pragmatist: He doesn't have any combat training and the Purgers aren't going to play fair, so he pretty much fights off his enemies with whatever is to hand.
Decoy Protagonist: James seems like the main protagonist of the first film, only to be killed by the Polite Leader near the end of the film.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: He's stabbed to death by the Polite Leader.
Karma Houdini Warranty: He has long been getting away with selling faulty security systems before the start of the first film. It's only after he steps up and tries to defend his family that the Polite Leader runs him through with his machete.
Papa Wolf: He's fiercely protective of his family and doesn't hesitate to kill to keep them safe.
Properly Paranoid: He doesn't want to let Dwayne in the house out of the fear that people are after him. He turns out to be exactly right.
Rich Bitch: A male version. Not to the extent of Mary, but he's very pleased with himself for getting rich off selling security systems that don't hold up to strong attacks.
Took a Level in Badass: James was a fairly average, well-to-do guy but over the course of the home invasion he's forced to take numerous levels in badass to protect his family.

Mary

Mary Sandin

Played By: Lena Headey

Action Survivor: Bordering on this and Action Mom by the end of the Purge night. Her takedown of Grace is done with some serious skill and finesse.
Break the Haughty: The events of the home invasion certainly bring her down a peg or two.
Cruel Mercy: Allowing her neighbors to live after they tried to kill her family, fully knowing that they want her family dead just because it flaunts its riches a bit more blatantly than them, that they may try this again come next Purge night if she stays, and letting them assume that she will be prepared for them.
Dissonant Serenity: She's borderline Faux Affably Evil minus the evil at the end. While holding her petty murderous neighbors at gunpoint, she still makes "civil conversation" all while barely bothering to hide just her grimaces of hateful anger.
Heel Realization: It doesn't take her long to realize that what she and her husband are doing to the stranger is not any different to what the Purge murderers outside the house want to do.
Mama Bear: She proves no less protective of her family than her husband does.
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: She unleashes one on her neighbour Grace.
Rich Bitch: Pre-Character Development, Mary is a passive-aggressive snob who gossips with neighbors while making subtle boasts about how well-off her family is.
Tranquil Fury: The end of the film has her and Dwayne holding the Sandins' treacherous neighbours at gunpoint, wherein she only ever raises her voice when Grace tries to pull a last-minute cheap shot and gets beaten to shit for it. when the Purge alarm sounds, she whispers out, "Get the hell out of my house."

Zoey

Zoey Sandin

Played By: Adelaide Kane

Big Damn Heroes: She shoots down the Polite Leader when he has her family cornered.
Bratty Teenage Daughter: A classic example until circumstances force her to grow up.
Break the Cutie: And how. She watches her boyfriend attempt to murder her father, then watches her boyfriend die in her arms, then gets held at gunpoint by Dwayne, then watches her parents torture Dwayne into submission, then watches her father die. All in one night!
Cool Big Sis: She and Charlie appear to get along pretty well and enjoy making crude jokes together at during, much to the chagrin on their parents.
Hidden Heart of Gold: She might seem like a bit of a brat, but she loves her family dearly and was horrified when her crazed boyfriend attempted to kill her father.
Locked Out of the Loop: She was so horrified by what happened with Henry trying to kill her dad (and also didn't see the stranger in the foyer of the house) that she runs off to process it all alone. It means that she's left entirely unaware of what's going on when the invaders start harassing them outside, and doesn't know why they're even outside to begin with.
Ms. Fanservice: Rocks a school uniform with a pretty short skirt through the entire film.
No Kill like Overkill: She fires no less than six shots right into the Polite Leader's body when he's threatening her family.
Skewed Priorities: Subverted. While she seems to be more concerned with her murderous boyfriend than her own family, after he's dead, she seeks out her family to see if her father is okay and only brings him up a couple more times while clearly not having anything against her father for defending himself.
Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: What happens when her boyfriend tries to kill her father to be with her? While she reacts to Henry's gunshot because he happened to be right there, she is horrified by what he did and doesn't hold any grudges against her father for defending himself against Henry.

Charlie

Charlie Sandin

Played By: Max Burkholder

Armor-Piercing Question: He asks his parents why they don't purge and if they would if they had to, and their answers not only displease him but demonstrate to the audience the secret regime and classist nature of the Purge.
Creepy Child: A lot of his actions (keeping track of his heart rate, the bolt-hole on his room being full of gory, Purge-related drawings and him constantly using his camera drone (which is already creepy as it is) to constantly peek around the house) scream this.
The Heart: Was the one who opened the house to save a stranger from being lynched.
The Millstone: He not only let in a homeless man wanted by the purgers, he also helps hide him away from his own parents while he's inside the house.
Nice Guy: The only member of the Sandin family who isn't a snob as he makes a genuine effort to selflessly help someone who needed it regardless of the outcome. Worth noting that he's the only one who seemed disturbed by the idea of the Purge before it began, while the rest of his family were perfectly content with it.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: All of the horrors that the Sandins go through the night are brought upon because he decided to open the house and allow a hobo to run inside to try to prevent him being killed by Purgers.
What You Are in the Dark: Absolutely no one would have known or even faulted him for letting the homeless man die, but he lets him in anyway. This turns out to save them in the end, when their neighbors invade the house to kill them.
Wise Beyond Their Years: Although not without sheltered naivete, Charlie has a fair amount of sympathy for other people (more so than his own parents) and is the only one who seems to understand that The Purge is ethically wrong.

Sanchez Family

Eva

Eva Sanchez

Played By: Carmen Ejogo

Mama Bear: Tries to protect her daughter at all costs.

Cali

Cali Sanchez

Played By: Zoë Soul

Brutal Honesty: Definitely when talking to Leo. Has no problem flat-out telling him when he's being a jerk. Regardless of him being the only hope they have.
Morality Chain: She repeatedly tells Leo that purging is wrong. It ultimately helps prevent him from carrying out the murder.

Papa Rico

Played By: John Beasley

Heroic Sacrifice: He sells himself to be killed by a wealthy family so his daughter and grandchild can live better lives.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Kinda abrasive and unpleasant to his buddies around him, but he's ultimately a good man who watches out for them.

Joe's Deli

Joe Dixon

Played By: Mykelti Williamson

Benevolent Boss: To Marcos, certainly.
Dark and Troubled Past: Used to be a member of the Crips gang.
Deadpan Snarker: He's a lot more cynical than the rest of his friends, and makes it clear that he doesn't think Roan can win.
Good Is Not Soft: Despite being a nice guy, he's more than willing to arm himself and his chums with guns to run over anyone who tries to threaten them.
Heroic Sacrifice: Is fatally shot protecting Senator Roan.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Cynical and rather cold to people, especially Leo, but he's very protective of his best friends.
Mutual Kill: Is fatally shot by Harmon James, but manages to still blow the bastard's brains out.
Parental Substitute: Implied to be one to Laney, as she says he helped her get out of the gang life.
Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: With Leo, initially. By the end of Purge Night, however, they've become Fire-Forged Friends.

Laney Rucker

Played By: Betty Gabriel

Action Girl: She is quite able to defend herself, and keeps a sawed-off shotgun next to her seat while patrolling in her fortified ambulance. She easily takes out half of Kimmy's group without flinching.
Big Damn Heroes: Arrives in the nick of time before Kimmy and her fellow Purgers bust into Joe's deli, mowing down two with the ambulance, taking out the remainder, then blowing Kimmy's brains across the road.
Laney: Pequeña Muerte is back, bitches!
Combat Medic: She and her partner Dawn drive around Washington in a fortified ambulance on Purge Night, treating those who've been injured.
Dark and Troubled Past: In addition to shop-lifting from Joe when she was younger, she's implied to have been quite violent during purges when she was young, to the point that a pair of teenagers recognize who she is on sight.
Red Baron: Earned the nickname of Pequeña Muerte, the Little Death, when she was young. She's reformed and doesn't seem too proud of her past.
Undying Loyalty: To Joe

Marcos

Played By: Joseph Julian Soria

Big Damn Heroes: Saves Charlie Roan from having her throat slit by Caleb Warrens by blowing Caleb's brains out.
Dark and Troubled Past: He lived in Mexico before emigrating to the USA seven years before the events of the film and indicates he had to do a lot of shady things to survive.
Marcos: Every day in Juárez was like the Purge.
Hidden Depths: He's a big fan of Roan's and drops her a few bits of advice that she takes to heart and helps her win the election.
Undying Loyalty: To Joe, who gave him a job and a chance at a new life when he moved to the States, to the point Marcos is willing to stay and help him protect the store from looting Purgers.
Would Hit a Girl: He gives Kimmy a flesh wound with a sniper rifle and implies he's more than prepared to put the next bullet between her eyes.
Kimmy: [to Joe] You ain't got the balls to stop me! Marcos shoots her ear off
Marcos: I have the balls! Now go.

Tucker Family

Dylan

Dylan Tucker

Played By: Josh Lucas

Character Development: Initially he wasn't fond of Mexicans around him, not even wanting his future kids to learn their language and was even hostile to Juan and Adela. Over the course of the film, he and the Mexicans fight their way together to Mexico's border. After the whole situation dies down for them, he thanks both Juan and Adela in Mexican-Spanish.

Caleb

Caleb Tucker

Played By: Will Patton

Boom, Headshot!: Gets shot in the head by a Forever Purger holding him hostage in his own ranch.

Other Citizens

Charlie

Senator Charlene "Charlie" Roan

Played By: Elizabeth Mitchell

Action Politician: In the third film she's a Senator running for President, something the villains are trying to prevent. While she doesn't like violence, she's still willing to pick up a gun to defend herself.
All for Nothing: Despite all that she went through and seemingly succeeding in abolishing the Purge, the New Founding Fathers waltz back in and reinstate the Purge, turning America into an even bigger hellhole than it was when she was running for election.
Badass Boast: To Owens. "I am gonna beat the shit out of you on Election Day."
Big Good: Charlie is a legitimate public face of the anti-Purge movement.
Forced to Watch: The Purger who killed her family forced her to watch as he did so.
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: She's blonde and is a strong force for moral good.
Living MacGuffin: She's a Senator on a presidential run...which would threaten the NFFA's term in the White House. This basically cause the jerks there to slap a huge "shoot me" note on her, causing our heroes to try and protect her until the 12 hours of purging pass.
No Celebrities Were Harmed: Bears basic similarities to Hillary Clinton, including her gender and popularity in the race, but her focus on wealth disparity and the way the Purge affects the economically weak and her status as a senator makes her more closely resemble Bernie Sanders. (Possibly making her a Composite Character of both.)
Save This Person, Save the World: She intends to do away with the Purge once she's in office, and that's why the NFFA want her dead.
Sole Survivor: Of her family, who were all killed during a Purge night.

Shane

Played By: Zach Gilford

Brutal Honesty: Specifically in regards to Leo and regarding his trustworthiness. Pointing out how he's not only purging tonight but he's armed to the teeth.
Good Is Not Dumb: While the females in the group acquiescently follow Leo for safety, Shane remains hesitant and somewhat fearful of Leo. Despite being thankful for Leo saving their lives, he never forgets to mention Leo is a willing and dangerous Purger.
Nice Guy: Easily the nicest and most polite of the second film's main characters.
You Shall Not Pass!: Pulls one when it's apparent that the group may all die.

Tanya

Played By: Justina Machado

Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She's a genuinely kind woman, and is very willing to take in complete strangers into her home with her family to grant them safety. She also has a little bit of an alcohol and pill problem, and is also sleeping with her brother-in-law.
The Mistress: For her sister's husband.

Warren

Warren Grass

Played By: Brandon Keener

Big Damn Heroes: He kills Big Daddy, saving Leo's life at the last minute.
Heel–Face Turn: After Leo forgives and spares him, he rescues Leo from certain death.
- It should also be noted that he legitimately seems sorry for what he'd done, and it's shown that he doesn't participate in the Purge.
Mexican Standoff: He briefly ends up in one with two government goons during the finale.
Off on a Technicality: How he escaped punishment for running over Leo's child, although the specifics aren't known.

Darius

Darius Bryant

Played By: Sammi Rotibi

What Happened to the Mouse?: He splits from the group to find his family and we never see him make any more appearances in his movie.

First Purge Civilians

Dmitri

Played By: Y'lan Noel

Anti-Hero: He's a drug kingpin but is against the NFFA's dark agenda, especially with their mercenaries on the loose on his town.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character: With Leo. While Leo was a cop, Dmitri is a gangster. While Leo purposefully put himself out on Purge night, Dmitri only leaves his den when he realizes that there are mercenaries on the streets killing people.
Fake American: Y'lan Noel is British.
Made of Iron: Getting a bullet to his midsection doesn't stop him from shooting an explosive to finish off the remaining mercenaries and their leader. He even survives his gunshot wound!
Neighborhood-Friendly Gangsters: Becomes this at around the halfway point, when the gangsters realize that the NFFA are flooding the streets with mercenaries.
Theme Naming: Dmitri. Like Dwayne and Dante, it foreshadows him as one of the founders of the Resistance
Unscrupulous Hero: A drug kingpin and gangster who ends up against the corrupt regime of the NFFA.
Would Hit a Girl: Kinda rough on his former girlfriend Nya, especially when he shoves her.

Nya

Played By: Lex Scott Davis

Action Girl: Formerly ran with Dmitri, now an activist. Always a badass.
All Girls Want Bad Boys: At least they did. It's obvious that she still cares about Dmitri, but can't live his life.
Soapbox Sadie: To an extent. She's the leader of protests against "The Experiment". It's implied that she's one of the founders of the Resistance.

Isaiah

Played By: Joivan Wade

What You Are in the Dark: Is not able to shoot Skeletor, despite signing up for "The Experiment" to do just that.

Purgers

Henry

Played By: Tony Oller

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He's not the harmless Innocent Bystander boyfriend of Zoey that he initially made out to be when introduced, especially when he is carrying a Makarov PM in his pocket and his own agenda for Zoey's father.
Love Makes You Crazy: Henry was pretty willing and able (and tried, and failed miserably) to kill James Sandin because James disapproved of his relationship with Zoey. He doesn't seem to consider that Zoey might not want to be in a relationship with the man who murdered her father.
Love Makes You Evil: He was going to kill Mr. Sandin because he was going to apply the Parental Marriage Veto on his relationship with his daughter.
Starter Villain: After the Sandins deal with him, their purger troubles are far from over.

Polite Leader

Played By: Rhys Wakefield

Bad Boss: He kills one of his henchmen for being rude.
Big Bad: While Henry and Grace constitute separate threats, the Polite Leader is the main villain of The Purge since he gets the most screen time and his desire to kill the sheltered homeless man drives the bulk of the plot.
Blood Knight: He enjoys a good fight even though he likes murder more. When he kills James, he thanks him.
Cradling Your Kill: After stabbing James, he tenderly holds him and kisses his forehead while thanking him for being apart of his purge.
Disc-One Final Boss: Even after he's killed by Zoey, there's still the matter of having to face Grace before the Sandins can make it through the purge.
Faux Affably Evil: He isn't credited as "Polite Leader" for nothing. He smiles when he talks and never curses but rants about his need to purge and enjoys causing pain and death.
Giggling Villain: He can't go five minutes without giggling.
No Name Given: Only referred to as the "Polite Leader".
Politically Incorrect Villain: He prefers to target non-rich people since he considers them to be worthless.
Slasher Smile: His default expression.
The Sociopath: He wants to kill an innocent man for fun.

Leo

Sergeant Leo Barnes

Played By: Frank Grillo

Anti-Hero: While he repeatedly demonstrates that he's a good man, he's still a willing participant in the Purge. He upgrades to a fully-heroic Unscrupulous Hero in Election Year.
The Atoner: In Election Year, he is deeply ashamed of attempting to participate in the Purge in the previous movie, and now works for the political candidate attempting to end it.
Leo: I nearly did something that would have destroyed a lot of lives. I want this night gone.
Badass in a Nice Suit: In Election Year, he wears a nice suit and tie. Justified because he's now a bodyguard for a candidate in the presidential election.
Breakout Character: He's only appeared in Anarchy and Election Year, two out of five films, and made no appearance in the TV eries. Nonetheless, he's seen as the face and The Hero of the franchise's movies.
Contrasting Sequel Main Character: To the Sandins. They're a rich couple with little combat experience who are trying to stay out of the Purge. He's a gun-toting, Crazy-Prepared, badass reluctant Purger.
Kick The Son Of A Bitch: Since they can't kill Minister Owens, Leo settles for kneeing him in the balls.
Named in the Sequel: Was unnamed in Anarchy (and only credited as "Sargeant"), but eventually named Leo Barnes in Election Year.
One-Man Army: Between Anarchy and Election Year he racks up a substantial body count. He's easily the best fighter in the second film, and maybe the entire franchise.
Pet the Dog: Aside from saving Eva and Cali, and letting Shane and Liz stay in his car, he also gives Cali his Kevlar vest.
Redemption Earns Life: The man he decides to spare for recklessly killing his son ends up saving his life when Big Daddy has him at gunpoint.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: He's using the Purge to hunt for his son's killer.
Villain Killer: Downplayed in Anarchy, where he kills the most enemies but doesn't kill Big Daddy himself played straight in Election Year, where he also kills the most enemies, and Earl Danzinger by himself, and is one of several characters to participate in the deaths of the New Founding Fathers.

Kimmy

Played By: Brittany Mirabile

Asshole Victim: See Ax-Crazy and No Kill like Overkill below, no one is ever gonna mourn for her or her friends.
Ax-Crazy: Let's see. Killed her own parents for no real reason, cruised around with her friends killing people on Purge Night, and threatened to kill everyone inside a store and burn the whole place to the ground because the owner stopped her from shoplifting. Yeah, she qualifies.
Bling-Bling-BANG!: She and her gang all sport Golden AK-47s with rhinestone studded stocks.
Death by Irony: Kimmy's death ironically came at the hands of the person she idolized, Laney.
Disproportionate Retribution: Antagonizes the store Joe works at and plans to kill him and everyone inside all because he and Laney stopped her and her friend from shoplifting a candy bar.
False Rape Accusation: Threatens this when Joe catches her trying to shoplift from his store. This is our first hint that she's not a good person.
Hero Worship: Despite being an abhorrent person, she idolizes Laney. Subverted in that she only idolizes who Laney was when she was young, not the older, reformed Laney.
Large Ham: In a story that has no shortage of hammy, over the top characters, she BY FAR takes the cake. She's just a candy bar away from LITERALLY Chewing the Scenery!
No Kill like Overkill: She's on the receiving end of this from Laney, who mows her down with an ambulance at high speed and then gets out and blows Kimmy's brains across the tarmac, quite frankly she really had it coming.
Pet the Dog: Her only redeeming quality is that she is genuine friends with the girls she's purging with, but that's still not saying much.
Self-Made Orphan: Murdered her own mother and father for no real reason, very likely to avert being told what to do by them given she represents Teens Are Monsters and opposing her rule-inflicting parents is one aspect of this archetype.
The Smurfette Principle: Averted. Her whole group is an Amazon Brigade.
The Sociopath: She murdered her parents For the Evulz, boasts about it and tries to kill everyone inside a candy store for the abhorrent crime of not allowing her to nick a candy bar.
Teens Are Monsters: A walking example of how horrible teens can be when there are no rules.

The Ferrins

Grace & Mr. Ferrin

Played By: Arija Bareikis & Dana Bunch

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Grace in particular acts friendly toward the Sandins; there's some passive-aggressive oneupmanship between the two, but nothing beyond Stepford Smiler. Then on the night of the Purge, Grace and her husband join up with the other neighbors to apply the Tall Poppy Syndrome on the Sandins with extreme prejudice (even going The Only One Allowed to Defeat You on the younger Purgers).
Cruel Mercy: Grace and her husband were allowed to live by Mary against their will so they could live with their guilt.
Evil Is Petty: Their reasons for wanting to kill the Sandins are incredibly petty; they were sick of the Sandins 'flaunting' their superior wealth, and the modifications the Sandins made to their house clashed with the neighborhood's style.
Laser-Guided Karma: Their whole motivation for killing the Sandins was that they were arrogant elitists who acted like they were better than everyone else in the neighbourhood. As stated above, that is not only a pathetic excuse for their actions, but when the situation is reversed and the Ferrins find themselves at the Sandin's mercy, Mary lets them live, proving that her family is better.
- As a bonus, when Grace makes a last ditch attempt to kill Mary, she simply breaks her nose and shames her with her cowardice.
The Only One Allowed to Defeat You: They arrive to kill the preppy Purgers and save the Sandins, but only so they could kill the family themselves.
Villainous Rescue: They kill the preppy Purgers before they can take out the Sandins; as it turns out, it's a case of The Only One Allowed to Defeat You.

The Halversons

Mr. & Mrs. Halverson

Played By: Chris Mulkey & Tisha French

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Were going to apply the Tall Poppy Syndrome on the Sandins with extreme prejudice (even going The Only One Allowed to Defeat You on the younger Purgers).
Cruel Mercy: They were allowed to live by Mary against their will so they could live with their guilt.
Defiant to the End: Mr. Halverson initially tried to be this towards Mary when she tries to strike up a condescending conversation, only for him to tell her to "go fuck yourself," but with Dwayne holding him at gunpoint, he gives in to respond.
Evil Is Petty: Among other reasons why they were going to kill the Sandins (in general because they had more money and were "flaunting" it), was because the Sandins did modifications to their house that clashed with the neighborhood's style.

Skeletor

Played By: Rotimi Paul

Ax-Crazy: A razorblade wielding dopefiend who made the first kill of the Purge series chronologically.
Big Bad Wannabe: While he obviously is a threat to Isaiah and anyone else he comes across, the movie makes clear he's an exception to the response of the Purge (ie minor crimes and hedonism), and the true villain is the NFFA.
Plot Armor: Despite how Obviously Evil he is, Skeletor makes it a decent way through the night before being killed.
Slasher Smile: A gruesome one, magnified by his facial scarring.

Elijah Hardin

Elijah Hardin (Alpha)

Played By: Jeffrey Doornbos

Asshole Victim: He is the leader of the Ever After Purgers who is very bloodthirsty so his death is well deserved with nobody caring about him.
Beard of Evil: He's got a big bushy one.
Big Bad: Leads the Ever After Purgers against the protagonists in The Forever Purge.
Boom, Headshot!: After Dylan and Juan subdue him with a lasso, Juan finishes him off by shooting him in the head.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: His wife's death is why he chases the protagonists.
Final Boss: The final obstacle Adela, Juan, and Dylan have to face before making it across the Mexican border. He would’ve also been this for the franchise as a whole had the sixth film not come into fruition.
Politically Incorrect Villain: His organization vows to "make America American again" by slaughtering all immigrants.
Right-Wing Militia Fanatic: He leads an organization to kill all immigrants. Mexicans in America are not spared.
Villainous Breakdown: After Juan kills his wife, he completely loses it.

Characters / The Purge Films

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The New Founding Fathers (N.F.F.A.)