As a horror movie based on a Stephen King novel, it should be no surprise to anyone that the upcoming remake of Firestarter will be full of flames, chills and thrills. Due to this less than family-friendly nature, it's also no surprise that the film won't be an adventure for the whole family. This is reflected in the movie's R rating.

What is surprising, however, is how hard the filmmakers are leaning into the R rating, especially given how much of a blockbuster this version of the story looks to be. This is especially the case when the original seemed positively tame by today's standards. Here's why the new version of Firestarter is rated R, and how it actually complies with the film's supposed fidelity to the book.

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What Are The Firestarter Movies Rated?

Firestarter-2022-Drew-Barrymore

The new Firestarter is rated R, basically for one element in particular: violence. Violent content is the only given reason for the film's rating, which says a lot. It's almost odd for a film to receive such a strong rating without an additional reason, such as harsh language or nudity. For instance, while the 2019 remake of Pet Sematary was rated R mostly for its graphic violence, there was also some brief strong language that further justified this rating.

Keep in mind that the original Firestarter adaptation from 1984 was also rated R, as it featured people being burned or catching on fire quite prominently. It's worth noting, however, that this film came out in the same year as Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, the second entry in the Indiana Jones franchise. The violent content in that film, as well as that of fellow PG-rated feature Gremlins sparked the creation of the PG-13 rating, and it's arguable that the original Firestarter would receive this rating today. The less harsh nature of some deaths can also be attributed to the special effects of the time. While that movie might be fairly docile in today's market, especially given the grittiness and gore of recent PG-13 superhero films such as The Batman and the newly released Doctor Strange In the Multiverse of Madness, the new version is sure to earn an R rating.

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Accuracy To The Book Will Make Firestarter R Rated

Ryan Kiera Armstrong Blumhouse Firestarter reboot

Though the 1984 Firestarter movie might not seem that bad today, the original novel from Stephen King was a much more graphic and violent affair. The nature of the fires, as well as the fiery deaths of many of the story's antagonists, is described in vivid detail. This graphic level of gore could be argued as necessary to make the story into a true horror tale, namely due to the lack of anything particularly creepy or supernatural when compared to other Stephen King books such as IT or Pet Sematary.

Keith Thomas, the director of the new Firestarter, has stated that this version will be even closer to the book than the original was. Much of his framing when explaining the differences between the 1984 Firestarter and this version has to do with filmmaking and how it's evolved. Thus, it's logical that the new movie will take advantage of improved movie special effects to showcase some truly scorching death sequences. Audiences will have to see for themselves when Firestarter burns its way onto the big screen and onto the Peacock streaming service this Friday.