Producers James Wan and Jason Blum have pushed back against the sentiment that the upcoming horror film “M3GAN” should have been an R-rated film.
The MPA gave the A.I. killer doll movie a PG-13 rating for “violent content and terror, some strong language and a suggestive reference.”
There’s certainly some creepiness in the trailers for the film, but no indication of the kind of extreme bloodletting that turned the indie film “Terrifier 2” into a surprise hit this Fall.
Still, that somewhat lighter rating has caused a bit of a stir and has led to Wan and Blum responding as part of an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
In a discussion covering a number of topics from the potential merger of their companies to a potential sequel to Leigh Whannell’s critical and commercial hit “The Invisible Man,” the pair say they didn’t have to compromise the scares in order to make the film. Wan says:
“Listen, I’ve done PG-13 films, and I’ve done R-rated films. So I think it’s about whatever is most suitable for the film, and even though M3GAN is a scary movie, teenagers will really dig this. They’ll really like it, and I think it will speak to them in a big way.”
Wan, of course, has directed PG-13 horror in the past, such as the first “Insidious” film. Blum meanwhile went further by saying some of the best horror movies aren’t rated R such as “A Quiet Place” and the Blum produced “Happy Death Day” series:
“Some of the scariest movies of all time are PG-13, so I don’t put too much stock in the bellyaching. Go see the movie, and then tell me about it.”
Gerard Johnstone helms “M3GAN” from a script by Wan and Akela Cooper. It opens in cinemas next Friday.
