Five Nights At Freddy's Confirmed Rating Is Shocking Despite Promises From Star

Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 confirmed rating is shocking. A sequel to 2023’s Five Nights at Freddy’s, the upcoming film is directed once again by Emma Tammi and written by creator Scott Cawthon, based on the 2014 video game of the same name. The story continues following Mike, Vanessa, and Abby one year after the events of the first film.

The Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 cast includes Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, Matthew Lillard, and Theodus Crane reprising their roles from the first film. New cast members include Scream‘s Skeet Ulrich, scream queen Mckenna Grace, Teo Briones (Chucky, Final Destination Bloodlines), Freddy Carter, and Seinfeld‘s Wayne Knight, most of whom have been cast in undisclosed roles.

Now, ahead of its release this December, the sequel has officially received a rating from the Motion Picture ᴀssociation. Per FilmRatings.com, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 has been rated PG-13 for “violent content, terror and some language.”

What Five Nights At Freddy’s 2’s MPAA Rating Means For The Movie

The first Five Nights at Freddy’s film was also rated PG-13 for “strong violent content, bloody images and language,” and received a lot of criticism for it, as many felt that the horror film should have been rated R. Many felt that to maintain a PG-13 rating, the amount of violence and gore was greatly minimized, undermining what could have been an R-rated splatterfest.

Earlier this year, Matthew Lilliard said that creator Scott Cawthon had listened to fan concerns when crafting the sequel, hinting that there will be more violence and scares. With this in mind, it’s particularly surprising that the sequel is, once again, rated PG-13. In fact, the reason for the rating doesn’t include “bloody images,” indicating it will actually be less violent.

Our Take On Five Nights At Freddy’s 2’s MPAA Rating

A young girl trying to play with a toy that has Freddy in Five Nights at Freddy's 2 trailer — A young girl trying to play with a toy that has Freddy in Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 trailer

The sequel’s PG-13 rating is surprising considering Matthew Lillard’s promise that Scott Cawthon had taken fan concerns about the lack of gore and scares into account. However, it shouldn’t be that surprising, considering that the first Five Nights at Freddy’s film was a big box office success that made $297 million, becoming the highest-grossing horror film of 2023.

Universal and Blumhouse have similar hopes for the sequel, and maintaining a PG-13 rating gives them a better chance of reaching a wider audience in theaters and achieving commercial success. With a PG-13 rating, Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 can continue to appeal to younger fans of the video games and maximize ticket sales. It’s only logical they would prioritize reach over an R-rating.