Now playing in theaters is The Purge: Anarchy, James DeMonaco's ambitious follow up to last summer's surprise hit The Purge. For the sequel DeMonaco takes to the streets with more action, a bigger cast of characters, and a deeper exploration of the world established in the first film. As "Sergeant", the taciturn anti-hero, Frank Grillo is an old-school "man's man". A good guy with big guns, a cool car, and a bad agenda. See, while our other protagonists are stuck outside fighting for their lives, he's there on purpose. He's there to purge, to exact vengeance. But "Sergeant" is thrust into the role of reluctant hero when he stumbles across a group of innocent survivors and realizes that he can’t just stand by and let bad things happen to good people. The Purge: Anarchy also stars Carmen Ejogo, Zach Gilford, Kiele Sanchez, Zoe Soul and Michael K. Williams.

I recently sat down with Grillo for an exclusive video interview. We talked about how the film harkens back to the action thrillers of the 1970's, creating a character in that tradition, his love for making action films, and more. He also talked about the upcoming remake of The Raid and why he won't make it if it's not up to par. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

Frank Grillo:

  • Talks about how The Purge: Anarchy is more action than horror and how it is a throwback to the action thrillers of the 1970's.
  • Why he signed on to the film.
  • How did he create a character in that tradition?
  • Did he have to do weapon training?
  • Talks about how much he loves making action movies and his complete disinterest in starring in a romance
  • Talks about the approach to The Raid remake. Says he won't make the film if it won't live up to the original.
  • Shows some love for my "The Punisher" T-shirt.

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