Two upcoming horror releases have had their MPAA screenings and come out of it with PG-13s.
In the case of Michael Dougherty's Christmas horror film KRAMPUS, which will be in theatres December 4th, I find the PG-13 to be a bit surprising, mainly because the director's very popular Halloween anthology TRICK 'R TREAT carried an R. I expected more of the same this time around, but the reasoning for its PG-13 sounds very good to me: "sequences of horror violence/terror, language and some drug material."
KRAMPUS has the following synopsis:
Young Max (Emjay Anthony) has reached the precarious age where he clings to the idea of Santa, even though the rest of the world doesn’t believe in him. The Christmas spirit really takes a hit when the boy sees how his dysfunctional family — including Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner and Allison Tolman — behaves when they come together for yuletide cheer, and Max is pretty much done with the whole thing.
Suddenly a blizzard and blackout hit their surroundings, meaning the horned-and-hooved Krampus and his sinister helpers are coming to town instead of the man with the bag.
On the other hand, the fact that PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES has been rated PG-13 is not surprising at all. That would seem to be the obvious approach, as I'm sure younger kids are a coveted demographic for this "Jane Austen with a twist" story from Burr Steers and Seth Grahame-Smith.
A zombie outbreak has fallen upon the land in this reimagining of Jane Austen's classic tale of the tangled relationships between lovers from different social classes in 19th century England. Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet (Lily James) is a master of martial arts and weaponry and the handsome Mr. Darcy (Sam Riley) is a fierce zombie killer, yet the epitome of upper class prejudice. As the zombie outbreak intensifies, they must swallow their pride and join forces on the blood-soaked battlefield in order to conquer the undead once and for all.
Set for release on February 5, 2016, PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES got its PG-13 for "zombie violence and action, and brief suggestive material".