Anna Daniels
Disney’s live-action remakes of their animated classics have typically been rated G or PG. They were family friendly, light on the violence, and only occasionally intense or scary. That’s no surprise for films attempting to cross generational barriers and speak to both kids and their Millennial parents who grew up with the original versions.
However, the live-action Mulan has officially broken this trend by cracking into PG-13 territory. This makes sense for a film that appears to be attempting to infuse the classic animated story with a heavy dose of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon-esque mystic martial arts action. Needless to say, the film leans heavily into the violence and warfare that surrounds Mulan’s story, leading to the higher rating.
So what about Rapunzel? If you’re considering the Tangled version of the tale, it should be fairly easy to keep things civil. The light yet action-packed narrative has some rough-around-the-edges moments, like the events in the Snuggly Duckling tavern and multiple scenes with dueling, fighting, and other kerfuffly nonsense. However, it never pushes the PG-13 envelope, and a live-action version shouldn’t need to either.
That said, the original story (more on that in a bit) has a bit more action and some pretty dark and gruesome scenes that could easily spike the rating to a more teenager-friendly level. Once again, time will tell what the final rating ends up being, but a live-action Rapunzel could certainly go either way.
Written by: Looper
