What is the age rating of Five Nights at Freddy’s?

The Halloween season continues to move ever onward and amongst all of the scary movies popping up in cinemas and online this year (The Nun II, Saw X, The Exorcist: Believer, Pet Sematary: Bloodlines, etc), a new horror film is about to enter the mix. This new movie is Five Nights at Freddy’s, which will be making its theatrical debut on October 25th in the UK, and October 27th in the US (where it will also stream on Peacock). 

If you’ve heard the name Five Nights at Freddy’s before, it’s probably because your friends or family members have no doubt mentioned it. Five Nights at Freddy’s is a popular point-and-click video game, which is available on various consoles and devices, and has a loyal following. 

Due to the popularity of the game, a movie adaptation has been in the pipeline for some time. This long-awaited movie is what is heading to screens this month, and promises to serve up some supernatural horror.

Directed by Emma Tammi, Five Nights at Freddy’s stars Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, and Matthew Lillard. The film tells the story of a security guard who takes a night job at a family entertainment centre, where the animatronics have murderous intentions.

Now, with Five Nights at Freddy’s being a high profile film, and one which is based on a successful video game, it’s going to attract a young audience. Teens like video games and horror, and this movie combines the two subjects.

But the question is: Is Five Nights at Freddy’s suitable for a teenager? Or perhaps more importantly: What is the age rating of Five Nights at Freddy’s?

In the US, Five Nights at Freddy’s has been granted a ‘PG-13’ rating by the Motion Picture Association (MPA). The film has been rated ‘PG-13’ because it contains strong violent content, bloody images, and language.

Movies which are rated ‘PG-13’ can be viewed by anyone, but parents are strongly cautioned and are urged to be aware of the film’s content. Parents allowing their children to watch Five Nights at Freddy’s should be mindful that some material may by inappropriate or unsuitable for the pre-teenage crowd.

As Five Nights at Freddy’s will be arriving on the Peacock streaming service, as well as in movie theatres, parents may wish to be more aware of the film’s content. With the movie being accessible from home, some might like to check it out first before showing it to their children.

However, in short: Anyone of any age in the US can watch Five Nights at Freddy’s.

In the UK, Five Nights at Freddy’s has been awarded a ‘15’ certificate by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). The movie has been classified as a ‘15’ by the BBFC due to strong threat and violence.

Films which carry a ‘15’ certificate are deemed unsuitable for anyone under the age of 15. In the UK, no one under the age of 15 will be permitted to watch a ‘15’ certificate movie in a cinema.

This rating is clearly quite different from the US ‘PG-13’. The UK rating is more restrictive.

As an example of what it means, in the US an 8-year-old could watch Five Nights at Freddy’s unaccompanied at the cinema if they so wished. But in the UK, no one under the age of 15 can view the movie.

Quite often, when a movie is rated ‘PG-13’ in the US, it is granted a ‘12A’ certificate in the UK, which means anyone under the age of 12 can watch, so long as they are accompanied by an adult. Or on the flip side, if a film is awarded a ‘15’ certificate in the UK, the closest US equivalent is an ‘R’ rating, which means restricted viewing for anyone under the age of 17.

This is clearly not the case with Five Nights at Freddy’s, and the censors in the US and the UK have different opinions about the movie’s content, which is why the ratings don’t line up. Based on the ratings that have been given by the MPA and the BBFC, the UK censors are applying more restrictions to screenings of Five Nights at Freddy’s than what is being applied in the US. 

So, going back to the earlier questions regarding age ratings and suitability for a teenager, here is how it breaks down:

In the US anyone can watch Five Nights at Freddy’s in a cinema, meaning the film is deemed suitable for a teenager (i.e. 13+). Whereas in the UK, only audiences aged 15 or over can watch Five Nights at Freddy’s in a cinema, meaning the film is deemed unsuitable for some teenagers (i.e. anyone below 15).

Depending on which part of the world you live in, different rules apply. But hopefully you can use the above information, as well as any additional guidance from your relevant censor, to help you decide if Five Nights at Freddy’s is suitable for you and your family.

—

Thank you for taking the time to read this post about Five Nights at Freddy’s on It’s A Stampede! – I hope it has proved useful. For more useful posts, be sure to check out the recommended reads below.