The Parent Television and Media Council (PTC) is once again targeting Disney+ for introducing R-rated Marvel superhero movies. Disney+ was slammed by the PTC earlier this year for streaming Netflix’s TV-MA-rated Defenders world shows, including Daredevil and other episodes in that realm.
Fans and Marvel actors have reacted favourably to the move to add Deadpool and Logan to the Disney+ library as the first R-rated movies, with Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman both posting about it on social media. The PTC, however, contends that this choice violates the Walt Disney Company’s 2019 pledge to never add adult films to Disney+.
Tim Winter, president of the PTC, stated as follows:
“Three years ago, the Walt Disney Company made a promise to families: No R-rated movies on Disney+, they said. It’s a family-focused platform, they said. We have Hulu for our edgier adult fare, they said. It turns out they were lying to us. After decades of corporate brilliance establishing itself as the world’s most trusted brand for families, today’s C-level suite at Disney has decided to flush it all down the toilet.”
The inclusion of mature content (including R-rated superhero movies and shows) on Disney+, according to Winter, betrays the confidence of families, on whose shoulders the Walt Disney Company created its enormous empire, and will ultimately result in the company’s demise.
For the knowledge of those who are unaware, the PTC is a conservative media advocacy organisation that strives to shield kids and families from graphic, vulgar, and profane content across all media channels. However, its critics claim that it encourages censorship. The PTC has previously demanded a ban on HBO’s Euphoria and recently criticized Netflix for including graphic adult content in Stranger Things season 4.
Now that Disney is considered a family-friendly brand, The Parents Television Council is criticising the streaming service for introducing content not suitable for kids. Disney+ formerly only permitted content rated TV-14 and younger, such as the Marvel series and films, West Side Story, Free Guy, Jungle Cruise, and other works that are all rated PG-13.
One of the latter populations to receive adult content on Disney+ is American viewers. Since more than a year ago, countries in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and all of Asia and Europe have had access to general material, including Deadpool, Dopesick, Only Murders In The Building, and now Pam & Tommy. The content is restricted by parental restrictions that need profiles from viewers 16 or older in order to watch them.
This week, Disney+ also added additional profile limitations that are more in line with the markets in the rest of the globe.
Disney+ is the third-largest streaming service in the world. The streaming service appears to be in favour of keeping all of its valued brands, including Star Wars and Marvel, on a single platform thanks to the acquisition of Fox and the many studios that currently have the rights to Marvel characters.
Unlike Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, it formerly only offered family-friendly movies. Additional films and TV series geared toward adults are likely to be released on the platform in the future.