Clerks filmmaker Kevin Smith has a long history of tussling with the Motion Picture Association of America over his films’ ratings, and apparently that isn’t going to change with his upcoming, teen-friendly horror movie Yoga Hosers.
Smith recently took his grievances to Instagram following the news of Yoga Hosers receiving a restricted, adults-only R rating from the MPAA. The reason behind the rating? A crude sketch on the cover of a book that’s shown for a brief moment in the film.
And yes, it really does seem to be that ridiculous.
According to Smith, the MPAA handed down the restricted rating due to a scene in which Johnny Depp’s character holds up the cover of a book on which someone has drawn a pair of testicles. In response to the news, Smith posted a photo of the offending scene (and sketch), and offered up a long description of what led up to the MPAA’s ruling, as well as what he plans to do next.
“The #MPAA gave my kids movie @YogaHosers an R rating for a cartoony drawing of testicles on a book cover,” wrote Smith in the caption for the photo. “So now, for the 4th time in my 22 year career, we will hold an appeals screening with the Motion Picture Association of America’s ratings board and try to get the R overturned for a less severe (and far more appropriate) PG-13.”
According to Smith, Yoga Hosers was made with a teenage audience in mind, making the R rating that much more problematic. Although the film received mixed reviews when it debuted at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, Smith insists that he’s aiming for a “tween girls” audience for the film, which co-stars his daughter Harley Quinn Smith and Depp’s daughter, Lily-Rose Melody Depp.
The film, which follows a pair of Canadian teenagers who get caught up in a quest to thwart an ancient evil rising from under the ground, is still waiting to receive its official theatrical release date, which is likely pending the final rating handed down by the MPAA.
