Top 10 R-Rated Movie Franchises That Went PG-13
Top 10 R-Rated Franchises That Went PG-13
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Nothing like toning down an adult series for the kids! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 R-Rated Franchises That Went PG-13. For this list, we’ll be looking at various franchises that started their lives as adult-oriented, R-rated movies before transitioning to PG-13, even if it was for one movie only.
#10: “Scary Movie” franchise (2000-)
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The first two “Scary Movie,” uh, movies were delightfully crude and wickedly offensive. Yes, there was violence and profanity, but most of the vile content stemmed from sexuality. The first film included countless innuendos and that infamous bathroom stall sequence. “Scary Movie 2” ramped up the sexual humor to an insane degree. The series subsequently shifted to a much more kid-friendly and “Naked Gun”-esque approach with “Scary Movie 3,” a trend that continued with the two subsequent sequels. However, that’s not to say that they were less funny. In fact, most people would agree that “3” was a huge improvement over “2!” No one actually kept track after that…
#9: “Riddick” franchise (2000-)
The “Riddick” series has gone through quite a few iterations over the years. It all began with “Pitch Black,” an “Alien”-like slasher that saw Riddick in a supporting role. Like many slashers, “Pitch Black” was rated R largely for its gore, which includes a woman being ripped in half by killer bat things. The series then shifted to a more sci-fi approach with “The Chronicles of Riddick,” losing a lot of violence and gore in the process. Various scenes were cut so the film could secure a PG-13 rating, but it was mostly for naught, as the movie bombed at the box office. Luckily, the series returned to its violent, R-rated roots for 2013’s “Riddick.” It was a huge improvement.
#8: “Speed” franchise (1994-)
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“Speed” is perhaps the lightest R in the history of light Rs. It was rated such for “violence and language,” although the violence is rather tame. The most extreme scene is when Howard gets decapitated in the subway, but it wasn’t done in a graphic or disturbing way. No, the R rating mostly stems from the frequent swearing, including the mother of all curse words. So, we didn’t exactly lose much when “Speed 2: Cruise Control” was rated PG-13. There’s no real swearing and the violence is limited to what the MPAA hilariously calls “frenetic disaster action.” Granted, no one saw “Speed 2” anyway, so it doesn’t really matter!
#7: “Vacation” franchise (1983-)
Most people know the “Vacation” series thanks to “Christmas Vacation,” the harmless, PG-13 rated holiday classic featuring no nudity or serious swearing… well, with one hilarious exception. We say that because the first “Vacation” was actually rated R! It was released in 1983, AKA before the advent of the PG-13 rating (which followed one year later). That said, it would still receive an R rating today. We see Ellen’s bare breasts on two separate occasions and the language isn’t cleaned up at all. It’s clear that the first “Vacation” was meant for the parents, whereas the subsequent films (including “Christmas Vacation”) were intended more as family events. The series did return to R territory with the 2015 soft reboot, but that’s a road better untraveled.
#6: “The Expendables” franchise (2010-)
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If an action series deserves to be rated R, it’s “The Expendables!” You can’t just throw away a cast like that on sissy Disney violence! The first two movies saw to this, as they were both rated R due in part to “bloody violence.” This includes instances of severed limbs, graphic beheadings, and bad guys being blown in half. That all changed with the significantly inferior “Expendables 3,” which contained much tamer violence. Yeah, all the traditional stabbings, explosions, and shootings are present, but gone are the visceral and messy results. It completely changed the nature of the series and made it seem like it was catering to the younger demographic rather than bombastic 80s action movie nostalgia.
#5: “Mad Max” franchise (1979-)
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Both “Mad Max” and “The Road Warrior” were released before the advent of the PG-13 rating, so they qualify as light Rs at best. Yes, the violence is persistent, but it’s nothing that wouldn’t be seen in a modern PG-13 action movie. Only one year after the invention of the PG-13 rating, “Beyond Thunderdome” was given the rating due to its subdued and bloodless violence. Coincidentally, most people often consider this to be the weakest “Mad Max.” The R rating was subsequently reinstated for “Fury Road,” although this too was a surprisingly light R… for the most part.
#4: “Alien” franchise (1979-) & “Predator” franchise (1987-)
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Both “Alien” and “Predator” helped define the 80s monster movie. Despite the lack of on-screen gore, the first three “Alien” movies were rated R, mostly thanks to their horrifying visuals and dour tone. This changed with “Resurrection,” which contained far more graphic detail. “Predator” was the more violent of the two franchises, as it contained gory instances of skinnings, mutilations, and severed limbs. Needless to say, fans were HYPED to see some blood and flying limbs in “Alien vs. Predator.” It would surely contain the scariest and goriest of both franchises, right? Wrong! It was lame PG-13 nonsense that tended to cut away from the more violent moments, and most of the gorier violence was contained to the monsters themselves. That’s… cool… right? Right guys?
#3: “Die Hard” franchise (1988-)
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When it was announced that “Live Free or Die Hard” would be PG-13, it was like the world was ending. The first three movies are rather violent with John getting progressively bloodier throughout the stories. Goons are stabbed through the eye and one man is sliced in half by a cable. They also contain lots of swearing, which helps convey John McClane’s everyman nature. Who wouldn’t be swearing in his situation!? In “Live Free or Die Hard,” John gets dirty rather than bloody and the movie had the nerve to edit over his iconic “Yippee ki yay” line with a gunshot! Nevertheless, we’d still take it over “A Good Day to Die Hard,” which proved that an R rating doesn’t automatically equal a good movie.
#2: “The Terminator” franchise (1984-)
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Maybe it’s about time that this series was terminated. The first three movies were given R ratings, with the first two being particularly hard Rs. They contain some graphic and fairly convincing surgery sequences (including The Terminator cutting out his own eyeball!), the violence is visceral and impactful, and characters swear up a storm. However, “Salvation” and “Genisys” took the easy PG-13 route, and the movies suffered as a result. The latter was particularly offensive, relying mostly on bloodless violence and horrible CGI to convey the carnage. The series returned to its R-rated roots for “Dark Fate,” but everyone had long stopped caring. And even then, it was nothing compared to the first two films.
#1: “RoboCop” franchise (1987-)
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The first “RoboCop” is arguably one of the most violent mainstream films ever released and originally received an X rating based solely on its graphic violence. Yes, most of the violence is comically over-the-top, but it still counts! The second movie retained the R rating, but the violence was significantly toned down. “RoboCop 3” did away with the blood and gore entirely, resulting in the fan-maligned and infamous PG-13 rating. It’s also considered the worst film in the series. Almost like it completely took the soul out of the franchise for a quick buck! Of course, that completely backfired as no one went to see it. It was an utter disaster on all fronts and Hollywood didn’t exactly learn its lesson with the PG-13 remake.
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