‘One Night Only’ Director Understands The “Sex Purge” Comparisons

While One Night Only is intended as a romantic-comedy, there are some obvious dystopian undertones that audiences can’t ignore.

Director Will Gluck recently addressed online comparisons between the Purge franchise and his new Universal rom-com, which is now in theaters, about two New Yorkers (Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner) who meet on the one night a year premarital sex is legal.

“I am very aware of the online discourse about this world and this movie being the ‘sex Purge,’ and rightfully so,” he told SlashFilm. “But I don’t want this movie to be about that. And I know I get some blowback going, ‘How could you make a movie about this not being about that?’ Because I love exploring characters and situations.

Gluck added, “Whenever us humans get put in situations, no matter how or why the situation happens, we still have to be humans and get through the day. And that’s what interests me. So we didn’t want it to overwhelm. We wanted to explain it. We didn’t want to take a side. We wanted to show both sides, but we wanted it to be about these two people going through this crazy night.”

With five movies and a TV series expanding on the universe since The Purge premiered in 2013, the Blumhouse franchise is set in an alternate reality where all crime, including murder, is legal one night a year for 12 hours.

In a similarly dystopian fascist universe, albeit with a much lighter mood, One Night Only follows recently dumped pizzeria owner Owen (Turner) and singer Allie (Barbaro) meet on the one night of the year premarital sex is legal under the United States’ “chastity mandate.”