Did you know that some of the best horror movies of all time were rated PG? What about those early Indiana Jones movies? Yep, those, along with some of the most iconic films from the ‘70s and ‘80s, which many of us grew up watching religiously, were technically PG movies.
In fact, there were a great number of comedies, dramas, and fantasy films that were initially released with a PG rating that would be either PG-13 (a rating not introduced until the mid ‘80s) or R by today’s standards. But as folks like to say, things were different back then.
Here are 30+ classic PG movies that would never be PG today…
Jaws (1975)
It may seem hard to believe, but Jaws, Steven Spielberg’s 1975 summer blockbuster about a vicious shark preying on beachgoers in a New England seaside town was released with a PG rating. Between the violent attacks sequences, that terrifying and grotesque visual of Ben Gardner’s corpse (missing eye and all), and some truly frightening moments, this would surely be a PG-13 movie by today’s standards.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Child slavery, hearts being ripped out of chests, and chilled monkey brains are just some of the grotesque and unsavory moments from Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Released in 1984 with a PG rating, this Indiana Jones sequel would lead to a major change in the rating system moving forward.
Ghostbusters (1984)
Ivan Reitman’s Ghostbusters is a movie that surely would have had a PG-13 rating if released in 2023, but 1984 was a different place and didn’t have anything between PG and R. That being said, Bill Murray, Harold Ramis, Dan Aykroyd, and the rest of the cast use some adult language that would never make it today. The same goes for the ghostly seduction scene involving Aykroyd’s Ray Stantz and and unseen spirit.
Poltergeist (1982)
One of the best haunted house movies, Tobe Hooper’s supernatural horror movie, Poltergeist, was, surprisingly enough, released with a PG rating, but only because it wasn’t quite extreme enough for the R designation. But still, there’s no way a movie that used real skeletons, featured some of the most terrifying scenes in movie history, and showed characters rolling and smoking a joint would be considered “PG” in 2023.
Gremlins (1984)
Joe Dante’s Christmastime horror comedy, Gremlins is a bundle of seasonal joy (just as long as you don’t feed it after midnight) with its demented and mutated mogwai bringing death and destruction to a once quiet town. This could very well be the most extreme PG movie thanks to its visceral stabbing scenes, decapitations, explosions, and profanity. It’s wild, it’s festive, and it’s violent.
Spaceballs (1987)
Believe it or not, the 1987 Star Wars parody, Spaceballs, was given a PG rating upon its release, at which time PG-13 was already around. There’s not a lot of violence in Lone Starr (Bill Pullman) and Barf’s (John Candy) quest to save Princess Vespa (Daphne Zuniga), but there’s plenty of profanity, which is to be expected with a Mel Brooks movie.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Shooting people point blank, Nazis having their faces melted off, a man backing into a propeller, and some choice language make Steven Spielberg’s Raiders of the Lost Ark one of the more intense PG-rated movies released over the years.
Sixteen Candles (1984)
One of the best examples of an ‘80s movie that didn’t age well, John Hughes’ Sixteen Candles pushes the envelope when it comes to sex, language, and substance abuse in a PG-rated movie. There isn’t any violence to speak of, but those slurs and actions by several characters, mostly Anthony Michael Hall’s Ted Farmer, have not aged well one bit.
Beetlejuice (1988)
Tim Burton’s 1988 horror-comedy, Beetlejuice, isn’t all that terrifying, but the movie about a recently deceased couple who call on the services of a raucous spirit to scare away the new owners of their home does feature some language that would never fly in a PG movie today.
The Goonies (1985)
Released with a PG rating in 1985, Richard Donner’s The Goonies isn’t as extreme as some of its contemporaries, but it certainly pushes the rating to the max, especially when it comes to the language used by the young cast. Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, and company aren’t throwing out F-bombs like Tony Montana, but there are some choice four-letter words throughout the gang’s quest to find One-Eyed Willy’s treasure.
Big (1988)
There’s a lot going on in Penny Marshall’s Big that would totally prevent the movie from having a PG rating 35 years later. The profanity (a certain four-letter word starting with “F” would never fly today), the whole subplot of Susan (Elizabeth Perkins) sleeping with Josh (Tom Hanks), a 12-year-old in an adult’s body, and other sexual references would put this in prime PG-13 territory.
Airplane! (1980)
It seems like 1980s movies got away with a lot compared to more modern releases, and that can be said about the 1980 parody film, Airplane!, which was full of one offensive or unsavory joke after another. Drug use, cussing, all sorts of sexual references, and more made this an unforgettable hit but also would hurt the film’s chances of getting a lighter rating by today’s standards.
Top Gun (1986)
Top Gun should have mostly likely been a PG-13 movie instead of being released with a PG rating, because Tony Scott’s 1986 high-stakes action flick is wild. Broken necks, shirtless volleyball, multiple bar scenes, a romantic sex scene, and so much profanity make this one of Tom Cruise’s best movies but also one with a questionable rating.
Annie Hall (1977)
How Woody Allen’s Oscar-winning Annie Hall was released with a PG rating instead of being rated-R in 1977 is one of cinema’s great mysteries. Sure, there’s no nudity and the only on-screen violence involves lobsters and spiders, but there’s so many sexual situations and references, drug use, and other scenes that haven’t aged well. Plus, you don’t kids watching this because they just might turn into cinefiles who write about movies for a living.
Clue (1985)
Clue, a classic whodunit based on an iconic board game, is another movie that pushes the PG rating to the extreme with its violence, language, and not-so-subtle sexual references. It’s not as wild as movies like Knives Out that would follow decades later, but this should have totally being a PG-13 movie looking back.
Dead Poets Society (1989)
You can’t have a teenage coming-of-age story without including some scenes that push the envelope, and Dead Poets Society has that in spades. Nude women in magazines, a great deal of profanity, and the whole part where a student commits suicide (off-screen) make this Robin Williams classic a movie that would never get a PG rating today.
The Witches (1990)
Who would have thought a movie about witches abducting and trapping children or turning them in rodents would be so terrifying, but Nicolas Roeg’s The Witches is just that. This Roald Dahl adaptation isn’t gory, filled with extreme language, or overly sexualized, but that iconic transformation scene is enough to put this in the running for a PG-13 rating, for sure.
Goldfinger (1964)
This could be applied to many of the older James Bond movies, but 1964’s Goldfinger, a film that includes scenes like a woman being turned into gold, lasers pointed at crotches, and multiple shootouts and heavily-implied sex scenes, was rated PG upon release.
The Graduate (1967)
Mike Nichols’ 1967 Oscar winner, The Graduate, is a movie that would have surely been released with a PG-13 rating if it would have come out 20 years later. There’s no way the seduction by Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft) and her affair with Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) would go over well with the MPAA and its PG rating nowadays.
Smokey and the Bandit (1977)
A cross-country journey to illegally deliver a truckload of Coors beer across the Mississippi River that is full of profanity and sexual innuendoes would never get a PG rating in 2023, but that was the case for Smokey and the Bandit upon its release in 1977. This Burt Reynolds classic is a relic of a bygone era.
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Released in 1959, Some Like It Hot is one of those movies that would definitely be released with a PG-13 rating, but it was considered PG at the time of its debut. Yeah, it’s nothing extreme, but the sexual innuendoes, drinking, and crass dialogue wouldn’t be as well-received by parents in 2023.
The Right Stuff (1983)
Philip Kaufman’s 1983 historical epic, The Right Stuff, follows some of NASA’s earliest and most iconic astronauts as they put their lives on the line in the name of science and national pride. Clocking in at over three hours in length, this movie is also filled with quite a few cuss words and fatal crashes. You could argue this one being a PG-13, or even R, movie by today’s standards.
The King of Comedy (1982)
Though not as extreme as other Martin Scorsese movies, the filmmaker’s 1982 crime drama, The King of Comedy, would definitely not have a PG rating 40+ years later. Rupert Pupkin (Robert De Niro) loses his mind and kidnaps late-night TV host Jerry Langford (Jerry Lewis) to get a spot on his successful show. Oh, and it inspired Todd Phillips’ Joker.
Uncle Buck (1989)
John Hughes’ late ‘80s classic, Uncle Buck is a movie that would never be PG today due to all the profanity and alcohol use. In fact, the 2016 CBS sitcom inspired by the John Candy movie had a TV-14 rating, the small-screen equivalent of PG-13.
Splash (1984)
Splash, the fantasy romantic comedy starring Daryl Hannah and Tom Hanks is a film that was released not long before the inception of the PG-13 rating designation, and one that would have probably not been a PG movie if it would have come out any later. Some of the nudity was edited out for the Disney+ streaming debut.
Barry Lyndon (1975)
There were quite a few PG Stanley Kubrick movies back in the day, including his 1975 historical epic, Barry Lyndon, which featured topless women, several instances of violence, and some drinking in its story about the titular social climber played by Ryan O’Neal.
The Outsiders (1983)
Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders helped launch the careers of stars like Matt Dillon, Ralph Macchio, C. Thomas Howell, and Tom Cruise, but this 1983 PG-rated movie also got away with a lot. There’s a great deal of violence, a decent amount of cussing, and so many underage kids drinking and smoking.
Planet Of The Apes (1968)
The original Planet of the Apes was released with a PG rating, but that probably wouldn’t be the case today. There’s some violence, slight profanity (thought nothing extreme), and uncomfortable sexual tension between man and ape, but the icing on the cake is the naked swimming scene early on. Just a bunch of butts, but too much for a PG rating.
The Bad News Bears (1976)
A kids movie is almost always going to be PG, even if said flick has all kinds of cuss words, children smoking cigarettes, and alcoholic coaches. Still, The Bad News Bears is a great baseball movie, as well as a time-capsule to the wild times of the ‘70s.
Kramer Vs. Kramer (1979)
Kramer vs. Kramer, Robert Benton’s legal drama about a couple (Meryl Streep and Dustin Hoffman) getting divorced and making sense of their new world, won five Oscars and told a brilliant story. However, there’s no way a movie with this much nudity and profanity would be PG today. Marriage Story, which is very similar in tone, had an R-rating upon its release in 2019.
Grease (1978)
The 1978 musical comedy, Grease, was released with a PG rating, something that’d never happen today. There’s those lyrics in “Summer Nights” that make you go “Yikes,” the mooning scene, and other parts that would probably be better suited for a PG-13 audience.
Grease 2 (1982)
Grease 2, took the formula from its predecessor and added more singing and more double-entrendres. It’s hard to see this one getting anywhere close to a PG rating today, but that was the case back in 1982.
All of these movies were once considered okay for the PG rating, though none of them would fall into that category in 2023. If anything, it’s amazing to see how much someone could get away with 30, 40, or 50 years ago.
