Mary Poppins beat the likes of Saltburn and Dune: Part Two to become the most complained about film of 2024, a new report has revealed.
The beloved 1964 musical, starring Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke, was rereleased in cinemas last year to celebrate its 60th anniversary.
The film now has a PG rating as opposed to its original U certification, which meant that the Disney classic used to be considered appropriate for all ages. This change prompted 56 complaints according to the British Board of Film Classification’s annual report.
The reason the BBFC, who determine the ratings for films in the UK, decided to make Mary Poppins a PG was due to the use of the word “hottentots”.
The word is said twice in the film by the character Admiral Boom, played by Reginald Owens, who uses it to refer to the soot-covered chimney sweeps that he can see running around on rooftops.
The slur was adopted by Dutch settlers in South Africa, thought to imitate their language. It was later used to refer to all Black people.
Those complaining to the BBFC had wanted the rating to remain unchanged, as, despite the word being offensive, it is outdated and has appeared in other films.
However, David Austin, chief executive of the BBFC, argued that: “The two uses of the discriminatory term ‘hottentots’ are neither criticised nor condemned, increasing the risk that very young viewers might repeat it without realising the potential for offence.”
Austin added: “Regular research tells us that a key concern for parents is the potential for children to be exposed to discriminatory language or behaviour which they may find distressing or repeat without realising the potential offence.”
In February 2024, a BBFC spokesperson told The Independent: “While Mary Poppins has a historical context, the use of discriminatory language is not condemned, and ultimately exceeds our guidelines for acceptable language at U. We therefore classified the film PG for discriminatory language.”
224 complaints were made to the BBFC in 2024, with James Cameron’s 1989 sci-fi thriller The Abyss earning the second most objections, with 17. This was thanks to an online rumour that the 4K cinema release of the film had been cancelled over concerns surrounding a scene where a live rat was submerged in liquid.
The BBFC clarified that when the film was first submitted in 1989, they felt the scene violated the Cinematograph Films (Animals) Act 1937. The board's view on the scene has not changed and has been re-edited in all versions of the film since.
Elsewhere, the climactic knife fight between Timothée Chalamet and Austin Butler’s characters in Dune: Part Two was complained about 13 times, as some viewers felt the film’s 12A rating was too lenient.
Emerald Fennell’s graphic dark comedy Saltburn was also criticised for having a 15 rating. The report states: “Those who got in touch with us generally felt that the film’s depiction of sexual obsession was too disturbing for 15. Given the blackly comic tone of the film and that the key scenes, while strong, lacked graphic nudity and other visual explicitness, Saltburn meets our standards at a 15 classification.”
