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Will McG Actually Get Terminator Salvation an R Rating?

by Alex Billington
March 1, 2009

Over the last few months I've attended multiple presentations for Terminator Salvation emceed McG. He's become as entertaining of a public speaker as Zack Snyder, Jon Favreau, J.J. Abrams, or Kevin Smith (it's no coincidence that they're also big directors). However, at both the New York Comic Con a few weeks ago and today at WonderCon, the one thing I've noticed is that he seems to still be open to the rating that Terminator Salvation will get in the end. At first I wasn't sure how much control he had, but after seeing some extended footage, I really am wondering if McG is pulling for an R rating. But is it necessary?

It all began at the San Diego Comic-Con way back in July of last year, where McG said during that panel that two Warner Brothers execs had given him their blessing to make this an R rated movie (the first three movies were rated R as well). But that was over 7 months ago and things may have changed, especially since they released a few trailers in the meantime. My guess is that Warner Brothers saw that the reaction was pretty great, thought that maybe Salvation did have a lot of summertime potential, and thought they should push it back down to the PG-13 rating because it would help them make more money than if it was R.

Terminator Salvation Jump to yesterday. McG asks the audience whether or not they want to see Moon Bloodgood's boobs in the movie (this is not a joke, it really happened). As my good friend Peter from SlashFilm so interestingly pointed out afterward, the only reason he would be fighting for this is because having her boobs would keep Salvation rated R. We were also shown a few complete scenes (although the CGI has hardly finished), but these two scenes featured a lot of foul language, which didn't affect me personally, but again that plays into the rating. Two strong signs that McG still wants, or even expects, this to be R in the end.

So here's where things get confusing, and I'm not the only one confused (see ComingSoon and SlashFilm). As of today, Terminator Salvation is due out in theaters in 81 days, just over 11 weeks, which means McG doesn't have that much time left to finish editing and cutting this together. I understand that maybe Warner Brothers wanted to gauge the reaction from audiences at both NYCC and WonderCon first, but now they've got to figure out what to do. And if I can have my say, I think it's to go R rated. Well, go R for violence and language, but not for nudity. I just hope he's not making it R just so that it is R, because that's definitely not a good idea.

I'm know I'm not the only one who wants to see a gritty, violent, and thoroughly entertaining Terminator movie that's as good as the first two in the franchise (but not the third). Those two were both R rated, but for "strong sci-fi action and violence", not nudity. Seeing Arnold rip the skin off of his exoskeleton was awesome, but seeing unnecessary nudity, as good as it may be, is kind of pointless for a Terminator movie. Or so that's what I think of this whole situation. And I'm just saying that because I don't want McG to push for R when it's not necessary. But if it's violent and if it's got the language, then go for it. Why not?

Explore tags: Discussion, Editorials, Opinions

John Madden

"I just hope he's not making it R just so that it is R, because that's definitely not a good idea." Agreed. T:S should only be R if the best possible cut of the film happens to be R. In the same way that they shouldn't just leave stuff out to make it PG-13 (and theoretically more commercial), I don't think they should tack on nudity/violence/gore just to appease the 'more violent = more awesome' crowd.
Darrin

i will be actually interested in this movie if it is rated R because of violence. i really cant see a pg 13 terminator
wassssssuuuuuupppppppp

^Why? Everything else that was or should be R has been dropped to a PG-13 rating. I almost had a heart attack when I saw Watchmen was R! I couldn't believe they pulled that off in a PG-13 world.
DoomCanoe

I hope its rated R I hope we at some point find out what happens to Jon Conner after he sends his dad back in time I hope they pull off the Post Apocalyptic futuristic U.S. War Zone I hope they Mix the Impact of "The Terminator" with the Action from "Terminator 2" I hope they keep the series as a more Guy Appealing/Action/Semi-Family film I hope they show amazing new SkyNet technology (which they will *thumbs up*) I hope They keep in the Nudity because sex sells ("swordfish" not good but people saw it to see Hally Berry's tits) and i really hope this movie brings the Metal Exo-Skeleton we all know and love back into our Economy and minds. hells yeah
Ryderup

Wasn't T3 pg-13?
Darunia

I'll take the R rating, with the boobs, and the language and violence.
Andrew

No, T3 was rated R (not that you'd really notice-the violence was never very graphic and there wasn't much strong language, either). Still, I'm a fan of the franchise (can't get enough Sarah Connor Chronicles-though it's recently been stalling in the plot department), and Salvation looks very promising. I'll see it opening weekend regardless of the rating (besides, here in Canada it will likely get a 14A either way).
Cody

Fuck yes R ftw... sick of ppl being all pussy with pg 13 ratings. PLus u gotta show one of the terms ripping his fake human skin off I mean cmon.
http://movieguyreviews4u.blogspot.com Ryan

I think the main fanbase who will see this movie is over 17. I think Transformers is more appealing to those 13-year-olds. I really do not think much of an audience would be lost and if it was then they can go with their parents since TERMINATOR is their generation.
R-Rated Arnold

McG! RATE DA MOVIE 'R' OR I WILL EAT YOU!!!!!!
Darrin

is it true that the theatrical trailer for gi joe will show before watchmen? a guy told me that.
The Rambler

Grammar check.
Joe

Kevin Smith is not a big director you moron
mMID

Yeah, he's actually pretty average... around 5'8"
Joe Potochar

I agree that Terminator should get the R rating for violence and language. After all it is a movie about "killing" machines. I also agree about the nudity, although it would be nice, it really isn"t needed in a Terminator film.
Jonathan

There are plenty of good movies that aren't rated R...just think of our beloved Dark Knight for one example. There were plenty of scenes in that film that seemed much more violent than they actually were. This was not achieved through the use of a ton of blood and guts all over the screen, but instead through combined efforts and talents of the director, actors, and composer. Wasn't the "magic trick" scene shocking enough to get a reaction and make a point about the character? Also, did we not come to view the Joker as a legitimately vile individual without him having to mutter a single f-word? Honestly, I'd prefer to see a movie without all of the language. I find it offensive and fairly distracting. It doesn't make a movie any more "real" or "gritty" to me (Something that, as I tried to say earlier, could easily be conveyed through the use of more subtle and intelligent methods). Actually, I enjoy movies with bad language very little and am less likely to buy them on DVD if they have an excessive amount. I remember not too long ago that the big "unrated" DVD craze started. Suddenly it was like, "Ooh! Let's make it unrated for the sake of making it unrated!" Most of the time it seems like it's done just to make the movie raunchier and more gory, not to make a serious "Director's Cut" that actually has some artistic merit. Don't get me wrong, I do watch and enjoy some R rated movies. I think that every once in a while to "show everything" and "say anything" in a film is appropriately fitting way to shock the audience and make a point. But I think that it should be the exception of the rule...NOT the standard like it seems to have become. I don't know...am I the only one who doesn't enjoy excessive the increasing amount of language, sex, and gore in films?
jake saunders

im all for the movie being rated R because all the gore and violence in this movie will be much more realistic. you get killed by on of these robots i can bet its not going to be a pretty sight in real life. yeah you lose money when its rated R but you also will lose the realists that what to see the movie if it is PG-13. very debatable topic.
Matthew

Are you kidding me? If you want to "reboot" this franchise, you make it a rated r film and pay homage to where it began.
xerxex

In all honesty I've noticed that PG-13 is becoming the R rating, and R is getting more and more robust in it's attempt of gritty realism, and that isn't a problem for me. But for some it is, and that's perfectly okay, so if McG wants to make it R thats good, we need some Terminators removing the Skin from the Skeletons, its in the first 2, don't really remeber the third all to well. So go for R in the end.
Dan W

I agree that it should be rated R for violence and language. I think a pg-13 movie just would not make sense in the scheme of things. I mean you got robots with no feelings destroying humans with no remorse. A bullet to the chest with no blood just doesn't make sense. And people screaming "Get the heck out of there!" also doesn't make sense in man's stand against an apocalyptic robot army. People won't really care about the language they use at this point. It has to be rated R. And I wouldn't mind seeing her tits.
Stevo

Anyone remember Live Free or Die Hard? That movie was horrid in theatres. It wasn't until I was coaxed into seeing the director cut was I convinced that it had merits. The studio wanted a wider appeal and you could visibly see points were dialogue was changed (the alley scene where the mac guy says something like he always thought it'd be a cool idea to start at zero again, for instance). I am not a fan of rating systems to begin with because they only seek to stifle creative works. However based on the content that is considered "r worthy" I can see no way to make a movie based on the Terminator mythology without it being "R". With that said, if T3 and The Sarah Conner Chrons are any indication of what Hollywood is willing to do to a story for money, I am extremely skeptical of this movie.
http://www.feoamante.com Feo Amante

Sex only sells if it makes sense in the movie. It was one thing in the sixties when budgets were low and horny teen virgins packed into grindhouse theaters to see a nipple flash. In the era of free porn on the Internet, when even horny teen virgins have access or are making their own, the bigger the budget, the less sex sells. If you unnecessarily paste foul language and nudity into your movie, then you aren't making a James Cameron worthy TERMINATOR movie, you are making a Fred Olen Ray movie. And that's just fine if you want a KIA return on your Pantera investment.
DinoChow

Actually, Alex, if the first one came out today, it would be rated R for nudity. Without Linda Hamilton's boobs, that movie is tame. I've seen harder PG-13 movies. T2 was released when PG-13 actually existed, so no idea why it's R.
heckle

It's an apocolyptic end of the world war movie. It has to be R
dom

T3 = PG13 and we know how shit that ended up! Stick to the formula and it'll work out!
http://www.daequitas.deviantart.com burak "daequitas"

make it R if it means more violence more gore heads go slpa under Ts metal feet or thorn to pieces by metal mens bullets those i vote R for but woulndt mind seing a couple of nudity related scenes if they are hot but R for only nudity???? i rather go on a date and have live nudity.... so please make your cut really carefull mr MCG
http://movies.iconocritic.com peloquin

The first Terminator definitely had some Sarah Connor boob shoots in it. During the scene when she conceives John. So it was rated R for nudity along with the violence and language.
Kongzilla

Nudity doesn't necessarily mean an automatic R. Kate Winslet was topless in Titanic and it was PG-13.
Jonas Imp

I personally think a shot of rain-soaked Moon Bloodgood's boobs is absolutely essential to the plot. The plot to make Terminator: Salivation as enjoyable as possible.
http://aatnet.wordpress.com Anastasios-Antonios Toulkeridis

It is supposed to be a WAR movie , so it HAS to be R. Please McG listen to the fans
http://aatnet.wordpress.com Anastasios-Antonios Toulkeridis

Given that Transformers 2 comes out roughly the same period it has to be R to stress the fact that it is more adult-oriented than transformers. We do NOT want yet another robot-toy movie. Give something for us adults too
http://google Xerxex

I hear you #16.
jeff

if this terminator salvation movie is rated pg-13, i will send a freakin terminator back in time to terminated mcg's mother, grandmother, greatgrandmother, great great grandmother, shit u get the idea. terminator 3 was pathatic piece of shit. terminator 1 and 2 was a work of art, well done by its true creator james camron. warner bros, u better not fuck this up like u bastards did with t3. dumbasses
Public

As many others said already. The setting for the Terminator is about machines killing humans, so to make the audience be scared of those machines, violence and gore (the R rating) should be in. Imagine if the first terminator movie didn't have a scene where the Terminator cuts his face, and in T2 he rips his skin off from his arm. Those scenes made those movies! Seeing it cutting its face makes the audience understand that this machine doesn't feel pain, and is brutal/feerless. Plus I watched first Terminators movies when I was a kid. Now I'm 22 and there are NOT many movies being made for adults! Now when I can legally watch R rated movies, I cannot because there are nearly none of such kind! Show people how a movie with machines should look like these days! Make it R rated!
http://www.feoamante.com Feo Amante

"Imagine if the first terminator movie didn't have a scene where the Terminator cuts his face, and in T2 he rips his skin off from his arm. Those scenes made those movies!" Yeah, but did those scenes give it the R or was it the fuck words and titty shots? JAWS had gory bloody scenes a decade earlier and it didn't get an R. Raiders of the Lost Ark, with it's dead bodies, impaled people, and exploding heads, came out around the same time as the first Terminator and IT didn't get an R.