In the days leading up to the premiere of Taylor Swift’s eagerly awaited The Eras Tour Movie, fans have been offered a glimpse of what’s in store, including something rather unexpected. The concert film, set to hit theaters on October 13, has garnered a PG-13 rating for “strong language and suggestive materials.”
The PG-13 stamp, while ensuring the film’s accessibility to a broader audience, has raised eyebrows and questions, considering several songs featured in the Eras Tour setlist are known for their explicit lyrics, which fans are concerned might be censored for the movie.
Tracks like ‘champagne problems’, ‘betty’, and the uncut 10-minute version of ‘All Too Well’ each incorporate the expletive “f*ck” at least once. Meanwhile, songs such as ‘Vigilante Shit’ and ‘Tolerate It’ are peppered with multiple instances of the word “shit”.
Fortunately, fans can breathe a sigh of relief as the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) guidelines allow for a PG-13 rating even for films with more than one expletive, provided a two-thirds majority of the Rating Board finds it appropriate due to the context or manner in which the words are used.
For example, Rian Johnson’s mystery film Knives Out and Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk both contained several expletives despite being awarded a PG-13 rating. Given that most expletives in Swift’s tracks are neither sexually explicit nor depict sexual activity, The Eras Tour Movie might just neatly fit within these parameters.
Swift’s unconventional approach to releasing the film has also garnered attention. Opting to sidestep the traditional studio system, the pop sensation has chosen to distribute the film directly through AMC Theaters.
This strategy might afford The Eras Tour Movie some flexibility regarding language censorship, a luxury that might not have been available had the film been entangled in negotiations with studios or streaming services.
For comparison, the 2020 film adaptation of Hamilton had to censor two uses of the expletive “f*ck” to align with MPAA ratings, a decision possibly swayed by its release through Disney and its subsequent debut on Disney+.
The Eras Tour Movie isn’t just a celebration of Swift’s musical journey; it’s also a testament to her drawing power. The film, just like the concerts it is based on, has already set records, becoming Fandango’s best first-day ticket seller of the year.
With AMC revealing that the film raked in a whopping $26 million in ticket sales revenue in September, it shattered the previous $16.9 million single-day ticket sales record set by Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021.
As The Eras Tour takes a brief hiatus before resuming in Brazil next month and launching its international leg next year, the film offers her fans a chance to relive the magic of Swift’s performances in theaters.
