As a general rule, movies that portray comic book characters have always been rated either PG or PG-13. This is because the movie studios want to get all of the young kids into the theater. However, that rule is starting to be broken on a regular basis. It started when “Deadpool” received an R rating. It went on to become the highest grossing R-rated film in history. It should be noted that this movie was produced by Fox before Disney bought the studio. Warner Bros. then released “Joker” a few months ago. It shattered all of the records that were set by “Deadpool.” Now it was just revealed that “Birds of Prey” will be the first film in the DC Universe that receives an R rating for language and violence.
It is not a surprise to many people that the producers and Warner Bros. decided to go in an R-rated direction after the monster success of “Joker.” There are many people who thought that “Suicide Squad” should have received an R rating when it was released a few years ago. However, it was given a PG-13. “Birds of Prey” marks the return of Margot Robbie to the role of Harley Quinn. It has become the most recognizable role of her career. This is the main reason that the film is getting so much hype. There are not very high box office projections for the film. However, there is always a chance that positive reviews from fans and critics will help the film to do better at the box office.
Warner Bros. clearly sees that there could be a very big market for making comic book movies that are rated R. This is because Disney owns Marvel. The likelihood of Disney allowing Marvel films to get an R rating is very low. There are many people who want their comic book movies to be more edgy. Therefore, more films in the DC universe will most likely sport an R rating. However, it will be very unlikely that Warner Bros. would ever allow a Superman, Batman or Wonder Woman movie to be rated R. They definitely want young kids to be able to go to those films without having to be accompanied by a parent. It will be interesting to see how “Birds of Prey” is received when it is finally released. The studio is hoping that it will be the beginning of a series.
