Deadpool Do you think the Deadpool movie would have grossed better if it wasn't r-rated?

[RLAAMJR.]

The Deadpool movie has already grossed $708,125,280 worldwide as of March 13, 2016 (and is still being shown worldwide) and will outgross Captain America: The Winter Soldier: $714,421,503 next week and is predicted to outgross the all-time highest grossing R-Rated movie The Matrix Reloaded $742,128,461 and Fox'es highest grossing superhero movie X-Men: Days of Future Past $747,862,775

The question is, what are exactly the parts of the Deadpool movie that made it R-rated? Do you think, there's another way to tell the story so it won't be r-rated and still gross well? Because we're talking about hundreds of million of young audiences who would have been able to watch the movie only if it wasn't R-rated.

Discuss.

 

[Mike Murdock]

Aren't options 2 and 4 basically the same thing?

To me, a PG-13 Deadpool would feel like a neutered PG-13 raunchy comedy that just doesn't work for anyone (I think we can all think of examples). The fact that it was R let it be creatively free. While it would have let in a wider audience if it were PG-13 because kids could go whose parents wouldn't let them (although there were plenty of kids who went and Deadpool was able to make money from parents who had to accompany their kid as well), I think it would have lost a lot from word of mouth about the quality of the film.

Keep in mind this wasn't a film that was slightly over the PG-13 line. You could get rid of the blood (some of the visual gags involving gore would have to go too), the profanity, the sex, the nudity, but I think almost all of it alone would be enough to push it over the edge (maybe the sex could be OK without nudity if Fox stood up and defended it as PG-13).

 

[def28]

Only from China.

Plenty of under 17 year olds saw this film. Most of their parents had to take them regardless. Lose the R and you lose alot of solid wom. It was a big part of the sale. Change the film to a pg-13 now and people will be pissed. We have seen what happens when you water down properties.

This movie worked perfectly for audiences, and the R rating didn't matter. This is second only to Spider-Man as far as Origins because the film makers made the film the way they wanted. If it was a bigger budget pg-13 they would have not had as much control.

 

[jokesonm3]

Yes, the reason for deadpool box office success was thanks to its brilliant marketing rather than its MPAA rating, only we the fans cared about its rating day in and day out, the general audience didn't care about that.

And yes as def28 said, China would have potentially been a huge box office contributor to Deadpool given the rise and love of cbm films the past couple of years.

 

[def28]

The R rating was a big part of the marketing right from the get go though. Reynolds started messing with people online with April Fools jokes about the rating almost a year ago when all this started, and then he killed Slater in that video saying it was R. That R rated announcement got over 10 million hits alone before the trailer even came out. Reynolds knew that was a strong point and something that would get peoples attention.

Can't do the same campaign and trailers with a pg-13. Change the rating and you essentially change how this movie marketed itself and trended. Which wouldn't be good, as I'm sure most will agree this was the best marketing ever for a film.

Being a foul mouthed/ultra violent film is why this particular film made people interested. Take that away and you will lose a section of the audience.

 

[psylockolussus]

Worldwide... definitely yes.

Also, When I saw the film, I saw a teenager that wasn't allowed to watch the film because he looked so young (underage) and he didn't bring his I.D. I felt bad for him.

 

[Mjölnir]

Possibly, depending on how well they could have fit the movie into the PG-13 rating, but I don't think it would have been a significant difference so the R-rating was the right choice. There's of course a slight chance that the R-rating helped it earn more since it helped it have a unique tone and all theaters aren't as hard on the recommendations, as well as plenty of countries had lower age limits than the US.

 

[Neno_Kos]

Nope. R-rating was reason why it was a hit in first place. Unique and different from everything we saw "superhero movies" on big screen.

 

[def28]

A few people are just assuming PG-13=more money regardless. Which isn't the case. The R rating was definitely a big part of the sell. Make the Hangover, Robocop, Beverly Hills Cop or Ted PG-13 and adults would not have reacted as much. Those films and Deadpool banked on it's R humor. No R rating means you are changing the film and what people enjoyed.

You would have to take away all the R rated material in the film and marketing (which is alot), go back in time and prove it would be as much of a hit on social media and cons. It's too crucial to the IP now to act like taking it away wouldn't matter at this point. Even his theme song is R rated.

Not saying a PG-13 couldn't work cause it obviously could, but assuming some alternate version not made by this team would be as enjoyed or well marketed is pretty far off. This movie is just about as big as gets for Superhero origins and hit all the right notes with audiences. The R rating played heavily into that.

The one to debate with ratings is the next Wolverine film. Cause if that film makes more the Origins and The Wolverine then audiences are more interested in seeing these violent characters lash out. There will be an actual comparison there.

 

[metaphysician]

I think the mistake people make is taking "PG-13 movies make more than R movies", and interpreting it to mean "An R movie would make more money if it were PG-13". The rule of thumb applies across the general body of works, not for any individual movie. In this case, it almost certainly wouldn't have helped, because to make Deadpool PG-13 would have required rewriting the entire plot from scratch, basically.

 

[psylockolussus]

"rewrite the entire plot from scratch"

Err no. They would need to remove a lot of cursed words, the sex scene and tone down the violence... but the story itself isn't very R rated. Also, they made Deadpool/Angel Dust/AJax mutants, so the brutality of the hits/punches that they are getting might get a pass similar to DOFP.

 

[RLAAMJR.]

Well, is there an r-rated movie in the top 50 highest grossing films of all time?

 

[def28]

Unadjusted there are a quite a few. Comedy wise and adjusted, Beverly Hills Cop is actually in the top 50. With Blazing Saddles and Animal House not far behind. Deadpool is first and foremost a comedy after all and R rated live action comedies have always sold very strong. Audiences like uncensored jokes with foul language and sex.

All that Top 50 doesn't matter though. An R rated comic film beat the majority of PG-13 films and that's that. Audiences were sold an entertaining foul mouthed comedy with uncensored violence and sex. And that's what they got.

You change the film's humor and you change the audiences reaction. Again, Wolverine is the one to watch since you will be able to compare the PG-13 films box office to the R one being released next year. Here with Deadpool you would have to prove that the jokes, hype, marketing and film itself would play stronger in a PG-13. Which you or nobody else can prove.

 

[psylockolussus]

It still doesn't need a start from scratch if it was able to get a Pg 13 rating.

 

[def28]

It still doesn't need a start from scratch if it was able to get a Pg 13 rating.

Never said it did. You could take just about any R rated film's basic plot and tone the characters down. Likewise with changing a PG-13 film to a PG.

 

[psylockolussus]

A Pg-13 rating could tone down the violence, excessive language and nudity... but those things aren't really gonna hurt the movie if the story is still good and the humour is still there. And there's nothing Rated R about the story. There's plenty of films with the lead character seeking revenge or their leading lady getting kidnapped. Wade could still get cancer, Vanessa could still work in a strip bar, they could keep the holiday sex scenes (minus the butt shots), they could keep the songs that they used, keep the opening sequence, post credits scenes, there's nothing R rated about Colossus and Teenage Warhead Negasonic, the violence towards the unnamed henchmen would be tone down and there wouldn't be blood but for Angel Dust/Colossus/Ajax/Deadpool, not really since we already saw that heavy violence towards mutant in The Wolverine/DOFP. And lastly, Deadpool is like the only one in the movie with a pouty mouth in the film and I don't even think he cursed a lot in the film. So I don't think it would tone down the character"S".

A Pg-13 rating Deadpool would have earned a lot of money in China and people under 16 or whatever ages that aren't allowed for a R film, would have seen the movie in a theater. And besides, the older people (18 or 21 and above), would not skip the film if the movie isn't rated R. Would it be a better movie, maybe not if you think more violence or action the better, but it would have definitely earned more money worldwide at least outside North America, Deadpool is not even close to DOFP's international box office.

 

[def28]

A Pg-13 rating could tone down the violence, excessive language and nudity... but those things aren't really gonna hurt the movie if the story is still good and the humour is still there. And there's nothing Rated R about the story. There's plenty of films with the lead character seeking revenge or their leading lady getting kidnapped. Wade could still get cancer, Vanessa could still work in a strip bar, they could keep the holiday sex scenes (minus the butt shots), they could keep the songs that they used, keep the opening sequence, post credits scenes, there's nothing R rated about Colossus and Teenage Warhead Negasonic, the violence towards the unnamed henchmen would be tone down and there wouldn't be blood but for Angel Dust/Colossus/Ajax/Deadpool, not really since we already saw that heavy violence towards mutant in The Wolverine/DOFP.

Yes it will. Otherwise this film would have been PG-13 in the first place. It changes the humor significantly and the films tone throughout. Ryan Reynolds, Rhett Reese, Judd Apatow, Harold Ramis, Seth Rogen, Paul Feig, Chris Miller/Phil Lord, Todd Phillips and Seth Macfarlene made their films R for a reason. It's not so they can make less money it's so they can make a better comedy and overall more entertaining film for the intended audience. Cutting out Deadpool's language and violence pisses off the majority of people who wanted to see this film. The success of this film doesn't show it should be PG-13 in any way, it shows that the filmmakers made the right choice. Audiences were more interested in an R rated Deadpool then just about any other comic IP introduction. Including X-Men, Iron Man, Amazing Spider-Man and Superman.

Tthe writers said the PG-13 version they tried sell the studio on as a last effort just wasn't as good. There's a reason this didn't play in China, and it's not because a PG-13 was easy to cut. Cutting out the r rated material made the film impossible to play...
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/deadpool-denied-release-china-due-856627

China's censorship authorities often work with Hollywood studios to create special cleaned-up cuts of R-rated movies, but sources close to the Deadpool decision say it wasn't possible to excise the offending material without causing plot problems.

And lastly, Deadpool is like the only one in the movie with a pouty mouth in the film and I don't even think he cursed a lot in the film.

84 F-words and its derivatives, 3 obscene hand gestures and 21 sexual references would need to be cut. That's a lot.

TJ Miller cursed plenty as well. You are cutting out his best scene an jokes by changing the rating.

Changing this film drastically would be a huge mistake after it's success. If you are changing Deadpool from R to PG-13 then you might as well change all comic films from PG-13 to PG. Since plenty of parents won't let their little kids see PG-13.

Just wait till Wolverine makes more box office with an R

 

[psylockolussus]

Nope.

If Wolverine makes more money than the previous Wolverine films the reason would be because people liked what they saw aka the "story and quality of the film" not because of MPAA rating not just amount of violence or f-words.

And I can also argue that the film getting a PG13 rating would allow more people to watch the film in a cinema, aka the people of China and kids and teenagers (including the person that I saw that was denied to watch the film).

 

[def28]

How are you not understanding that the graphic violence and adult language plays into the entertainment and quality of R rated films? Or that audiences prefer adult content when it comes to particular films and characters? It's not just the plot. Deadpool's plot is standard revenge story. It's the humor, style and uncensored attitude of the character that audiences responded to.

As for Logan, people clearly like it when Wolverine curses. People like it even more when Wolverine slices the living **** out of people. He is the most violent character in the Marvel universe. Fox themselves have already been making money on selling more violent and cursing in their Wolverine franchise with the extended edition of TW. And now they are taking the next step. They know that's a selling point, which is why we are getting an R rated film next. If a PG-13 Wolverine film was guaranteed to make more you wouldn't be seeing an R version or an Unrated version of previous films. And it won't stop there, Fox is almost certainly going to put out an R rated X-Force.

What the heck is the point of anyone making an R or PG-13 film if your argument is true. That argument is basically saying every film should be rated PG since that allows every parent clearance to take their kids to it and that automatically means more money? Doesn't work like that. Violence and sex sells. People have been too scared to make R rated big budget comic films because of the uncertainty and now Deadpool just proved everybody wrong. Audiences responded to it they way it was, not for the way it could have been.

A PG-13 Deadpool was never guaranteed to make the money this film did, becasue reviews would not have been the same for critics, audiences or fans. It's all a what if scenario with zero evidence.

 

[-JKR-]

Why are we even having this conversation, when Deadpool broke several box office records in its first weekend, and went on to gross more than $700 million worldwide, which by far exceeded anyone's expectations... on a $58 million budget!

The audience responded to something unique. To a movie which took risks, including its rating, and made it to theaters without cutting any corners tonally to accomodate the 'much beloved' four-quadrant audience. It didn't pander to the audience of 'last week's blockbuster,' and the risk totally paid off!

 

[def28]

Why are we even having this conversation, when Deadpool broke several box office records in its first weekend, and went on to gross more than $700 million worldwide, which by far exceeded anyone's expectations... on a $58 million budget!

I seriously have no idea. These PG-13 threads and arguments won't stop even after Deadpool destroyed PG-13 comic films and proved them all wrong.

But yeah...this is pointless.

 

[-JKR-]

By now, you'd think people would start accepting it for what it is. If the explicit violence and raunchiness ain't their thing, that's completely fine. Just watch something else. But the filmmakers' gamble paid off perfectly.

The poll needs a 'At this point the PG-13 chatter is completely pointless' button.

P.S.: What's ironic is that comic book geeks used to complain about people calling comic books "kids' stuff," and now they're *****ing about a movie not being targeted at children. There are plenty of other PG-13 franchises already. Just enjoy the variety. In a perfect world, there would be a bigger balance between PG-13 and R-rated blockbusters, like there used to be.

 

[Sithborg]

Absolutely not. I can tell you, The Wolverine is a weaker film for being PG 13 when compared to the Unrated Cut. They had to cut the freakin Ninja fight. And that really wasn't THAT violent. I shudder to think of what they would've had to cut to make this film PG 13. This is just absurd monday morning quarterbacking, of something that really, really worked. Beyond all of our imaginations.

This movie would not have made $200 million domestic with a PG 13 rating. And undercutting the marketing with the PG 13 rating would've been disasterous. I mean, just look at the announcement of the R rating. You couldn't do that "**** you slater" bit.

 

[Mjölnir]

How are you not understanding that the graphic violence and adult language plays into the entertainment and quality of R rated films? Or that audiences prefer adult content when it comes to particular films and characters? It's not just the plot. Deadpool's plot is standard revenge story. It's the humor, style and uncensored attitude of the character that audiences responded to.

As for Logan, people clearly like it when Wolverine curses. People like it even more when Wolverine slices the living **** out of people. He is the most violent character in the Marvel universe. Fox themselves have already been making money on selling more violent and cursing in their Wolverine franchise with the extended edition of TW. And now they are taking the next step. They know that's a selling point, which is why we are getting an R rated film next. If a PG-13 Wolverine film was guaranteed to make more you wouldn't be seeing an R version or an Unrated version of previous films. And it won't stop there, Fox is almost certainly going to put out an R rated X-Force.

What the heck is the point of anyone making an R or PG-13 film if your argument is true. That argument is basically saying every film should be rated PG since that allows every parent clearance to take their kids to it and that automatically means more money? Doesn't work like that. Violence and sex sells. People have been too scared to make R rated big budget comic films because of the uncertainty and now Deadpool just proved everybody wrong. Audiences responded to it they way it was, not for the way it could have been.

A PG-13 Deadpool was never guaranteed to make the money this film did, becasue reviews would not have been the same for critics, audiences or fans. It's all a what if scenario with zero evidence.

I certainly agree (as seen previously) that a PG-13 isn't guaranteed to make more money, but I also don't think that it's certain that the R rated version will have made more money, as seems to be another common argument.

Tons of Deadpool stories in the comics have not been what would make a movie rated R so you can clearly make Deadpool without that aspect. The directors also said that their PG-13 version of the script didn't feel as right but wasn't dramatically different either.

It's just a pretty difficult question to answer, especially since the success of Deadpool is unexpected so no one really knows the exact answer, but I think we're all happy that it was rated R and that it was hugely successful.

 

[-JKR-]

Comics violence and movie ratings don't coincide. The more explicit violence and blood splatters you see even in the most tame Deadpool stories couldn't have been included in a PG-13 movie. When you have a characters who's an amoral assassin, is irreverent, and whose action scenes rely so heavily on guns and swords, I don't really see a point in making a PG-13 adaptation.

It just doesn't make sense to me, the same way a PG-13 Die Hard, RoboCop, Terminator and Alien or Predator movie doesn't make sense to me. There are characters and stories which just need that edge. Another character that comes to mind where I wouldn't want a PG-13 version is Lobo.