Back in April, producer andThe Shape of Waterdirector Guillermo del Toro said he planned on director André Øvredal’s upcoming horror flickScary Stories to Tell in the Darkto snag a PG-13 rating. I thought that seemed a little far-fetched at the time, but today we have word that Del Toro and crew have managed to score just that. Yes, the MPAA has just announced thatScary Stories to Tell in the Darkhas officially been rated PG-13 for “terror/violence, disturbing images, thematic elements, language including racial epithets, and brief sexual references.”
“Racial epithets”? Huh. Anyway, once again,Guillermo del Torotold us back in April that this family-friendly rating is what he was aiming for, saying this.
“The anticipated rating isPG-13. I wanted to have standees that said, ‘You have to be this tall to see this movie,’ but somebody beat us to it, so what can we do [laughs]? But the idea is the books are a favorite among young readers, and I think that there are two or three generations of parents that know the books, too. So, it’s really going to be a ride, but there is a safety bar in it.”
Fair enough. But I’m still not sure, from the looks of therecently released Scary Stories trailer, that this is going to a be a movie I take my kids to see anytime soon. Maybe when they’re 13.
While we’re here, it’s also worth mentioning thatThe Turning, Universal’s upcoming take on Henry James’s classic ghost story novellaThe Turn of the Screw, has also snagged a PG-13 rating. This time the rating is for “terror, violence, disturbing images, brief strong language, and some suggestive content.” For those that might not know, this new take on James' scary-ass mini-novel will featureTerminator: Dark Fatestar Mackenzie Davis along withStranger ThingsandITbreakout Finn Wolfhard, andThe Florida Projectyoung actress Brooklynn Prince.The Turningis scheduled to be released by Universal Pictures on August 14, 2025.
Meanwhile,Scary Stories to Tell in the Darkwill beunleashed by Lionsgate on August 26, 2025.Troll HunterandThe Autopsy of Jane Doedirector André Øvredal takes the helm ofScary Stories to Tell in the Darkfrom a screenplay written by John August and Dan and Kevin Hageman based on a story by Guillermo del Toro, Patrick Melton, and Marcus Dunstan based on the kid’s horror book series by Alvin Schwartz. Del Toro also produces this teenage nightmare along with Sean Daniel, Jason F. Brown, J. Miles Dale, and Elizabeth Grave.
Scary Stories to Tell in the Darkstars Zoe Colletti as Stella Nicholls along with Michael Garza as Ramón Morales, Gabriel Rush as Auggie Hilderbrandt, and Austin Abrams as Tommy Milner.Breaking Badstar Dean Norris joins them as Deputy Roy Nicholls, along with Gil Bellows as Police Chief Turner, Lorraine Toussaint as Lou Lou, Austin Zajur as Chuck Steinberg, and Natalie Ganzhorn as Ruth Steinberg. The monsters set to be featured in the film include The Jangly Man, The Pale Lady, Harold the Scarecrow, and The Toe Monster played by Javier Botet. This update comes to us via theMPAA.
