Purple Francis

> "He needed to feel huge, fit believably into the world and read well as a silhouette."
>
> ―Jeremy Bennett, Valve

> "\*phew\* Good thing I'm purple."
>
> ―Purple Francis

Purple Francis is a playable character in Left 4 Dead. He looks mostly like the character Francis, but he has a purple hue to him. He owned a root beer factory before the apocalypse, and had 3 children and a wife.

Purple Francis doesn't really show much character outside of small conversations and reactions to other survivors dying.

He is referenced in “The Passing” campaign by the Left 4 Dead survivors, hinted at being dead (Which is then proven to be true in the Sacrifice comic). Francis refrains from speaking about the loss of Purple Francis, hesitating from continuing any conversation regarding him. Nick seems to have been struck hard by the news, which implies that they had some sort of past relationship. In the last chapter of The Passing, you can find Purple Francis roaming the top floor of the buildings by the port. The survivors don’t seem to notice it, therefore there are no lines regarding the Purple Francis sighting.

Purple Francis' facial features are portrayed by Purple Taylor Knox and he was voiced by Purple Vince Valenzuela.

Purple Francis was originally not meant to be a character, but after Marc Laidlaw (Writer for the Half-Life series) requested that he be put into the game, the developers of Left 4 Dead put him into the game, which is regarded as Turtle Rock’s best move at the time. Purple Francis at first received negative reaction for at first looking as if he was just a recoloring of Francis. The reaction soon turned positive after he spoke for the first time. It was reported that approximately 10 people passed out at the first hearing of his voice.

It is up to fan speculation whether Purple Francis was meant to survive the horde at the military base during The Sacrifice comic. When this question was brought up to Gabe Newell, he grew immensely angry and ordered the person who asked the question to leave immediately.

Purple Francis has been referenced in numerous pieces of media, even being referenced by then Mexican President Felipe Calderón.

## Background

Purple Francis was born in a candle factory to parents Francis Sr. and Merriweather in Medville, Ohio. At an early age, he was exposed to an iron-rich diet, causing his skin, hair, and eyes to turn a harsh purple tint. This quality attracted many women, causing him to be the father of 3 by age 11. At age 15, he was coerced into taking a hallucinogenic drug, which would affect him for the rest of his life. During his first trip, he reportedly had a 4-hour conversation with God, who told him he would be "the best Purple Francis ever conceived." After dropping out of middle school, he founded a root beer factory with his wife and his son, Cungulus. He maintained this job until the outbreak. His second son, Skibbity, became a member of the United Nations and went on to embezzle several millions of dollars from the Cuban government. His daughter, Johnson, is currently in a romantic relationship with former US president Ronald Reagan.

## Relationship with Other Survivors

Purple Francis most likely has the least lines in the game, so his relationships with the other survivors are very unclear. He mostly speaks to the others in regards to plans, happenings in the world, and reactions to when other survivors die.

* **Bill** Purple Francis and Bill are very neutral to each other, usually keeping to themselves about one another and not speaking much about anything. If Bill had a plan, Purple Francis would usually be in agreement of this plan. The most the two talked to each other was in the "No Mercy" campaign, where in the elevator, Purple Francis and Bill would strike up a conversation about different kinds of vintage drinks, before being cut off by Francis. When Bill dies, Purple Francis usually would state that he was a good man, and served his country well, and that he wished he could speak to him more. If Purple Francis were to die, however, Bill would state that he wished Purple Francis would of just held on just a bit longer. It is unknown what Purple Francis would of said in reference to Bill's sacrifice, but in an interview with Valve, it was stated that "he would probably have been remorseful".

* **Francis** Purple Francis and Francis have a strong like/dislike relationship, usually when Francis proclaims a illogical idea, Purple Francis attempts to change it up to be more logical. Francis dislikes this, and assumes Purple Francis has it out for him. Purple Francis does not think very highly of Francis, yet attempts to change Francis to be more helpful, which rarely ever works. Francis usually cuts of Purple Francis when he converses with the other Survivors. When Francis dies, Purple Francis shouts out in remorse, exclaiming that he wished he knew better. When Purple Francis dies, Francis audibly chokes up when paying his respects, which shows that Francis secretly liked Purple Francis to a high degree.

* **Zoey** Purple Francis and Zoey (much like with Purple Francis and Bill) are on neutral terms, except him and Zoey seem to speak more than he does with Bill. Purple Francis is keen on talking about movies with Zoey, telling her all his favorite ones, before getting cut off by Francis. In the elevator, Zoey asks Purple Francis if he likes monster movies, to which Purple Francis says that they aren't that good. Zoey, upon hearing this, mumbles to herself and looks away angrily. When Zoey dies, Purple Francis is less saddened by her death, stating that "she's the type to hold grudges", referencing her decreasing liking to Purple Francis after his comment on monster movies. Fans see this as a prediction to Zoey's dislike towards Bill's actions in *The Sacrifice comic*, yet Valve has stated that it was simply a coincidence. When Purple Francis dies, Zoey states that he was a great man, and regrets acting badly towards him due to what he said on monster movies.

* **Louis** Purple Francis and Louis seem to like each other a lot, complementing each others professions and often getting into conversations about numerous things. When Louis attempts to encourage the group, Purple Francis plays into it, aiding him in the encouragement. When assessing the airplane in the final chapter of "Dead Air", Louis asks if Purple Francis has ever been on a plane, to which Francis states that he has not, due to his fear of heights. Louis picks at him for this, but Purple Francis knows its in jest. When Louis dies, Purple Francis is the most sad at this, stating that "All the happiness remaining in the world just got pummeled to death". When Purple Francis dies, Louis regrets ever letting the infected take him, going so far as to hint that the death was the groups fault.

## Notes

Typing “z\_spawn purple\_francis" into the console will crash the game. It is unknown why this occurs.

* Fans speculate that it is due to Purple Francis and all his code being removed from the game (since the Last Stand update).
* Interestingly, you can find him in the Lighthouse map on the shipwrecked boat.

Due to a glitch on all copies of the game (post-recall), Left 4 Dead would completely erase all the code that calls for Purple Francis, which would make him never appear in game, although he is referenced by the other survivors.

* All copies shipped at launch did not contain this glitch, allowing those to see and play as Purple Francis. However, the game was recalled for a time due to all copies containing Purple Francis crashing on launch. The game was re-released without Purple Francis being in the game.

The Last Stand update removes all mentions of Purple Francis and any code related to him has since been deleted.

Purple Francis is the only character to not be referenced on the Left 4 Dead website.

## Purple Francis in Other Media

Purple Francis in the Left 4 Dead 2 Metal Slug Attack collab event.Purple Francis on the banner for the Left 4 Dead 2 Battle Cats collab gacha event.A playing card, specifically an Ace, altered to have Purple Francis on it. This appeared in promotional playing card sets in 2009.An image of Purple Francis supporting the rights of women.The Mexican Flag from 2009, showing Purple Francis proudly.