Pete Davidson to Star in New Thriller From The Purge Director

Actor Pete Davidson has mostly been known for his comedic efforts over the years, though audiences are sure to see a new side of the performer in the upcoming thriller The Home, which comes from The Purge creator James DeMonaco. Back in 2020, viewers got to see a more dramatic side of Davidson in The King of Staten Island, a semi-autobiographical dramedy about a man who struggled with becoming an adult while also dealing with his mother dating a new man and coping with his own mental illnesses. Davidson also went on to have a small role in James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad as Blackguard.

Deadline describes that Davidson will play “Max, a troubled man who starts working at a retirement home and realizes its residents and caretakers harbor sinister secrets. As he investigates the building and its forbidden fourth floor, he starts to uncover connections to his own past and upbringing as a foster child.”

“We’re excited to be backing DeMonaco’s brilliant vision,” producer Bill Block shared in a statement. “James’ The Purge horror franchise has grossed over $450 million at the worldwide box office. With his masterful storytelling abilities and Pete’s versatility as an actor, this film will put audiences everywhere on the edge of their seats.”

Davidson’s breakout opportunity came in 2014 when he joined the cast of Saturday Night Live at the age of 20, making him one of the youngest cast members to join the renowned sketch series in its history. 

Last year saw the release of The Forever Purge, the fifth installment into the dystopian action series. Ahead of its release, DeMonaco had been implying it would be the final film in the series, though he has since confirmed he wrote a script for another installment.

“Even with [The Forever Purge], we were like, ‘It needs to flip itself on its head,’” the filmmaker detailed to ComicBook.com last year. “And we didn’t really commit to even moving forward until I woke up with the idea that, ‘Oh, people don’t stop.’ That’s not like a natural, ‘Oh.’ We were like, ‘Oh, okay.’ Now, we thought, ‘Okay, let’s stop talking about this because…’ Otherwise, doing another Purge Night that ended in 12 hours felt like, ‘Ah, we just kind of repeating ourselves. We don’t want to do that again.’ And so, again, [Purge 6] also, like you just said, it’s, ‘Okay, let’s close that book and open a new book if we’re going to continue.’ So, I hope it works. People seem to be happy with the script, so let’s hope we get to do it.”  

Stay tuned for details on The Home.

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