Movies - TV
How The First Omen Barely Avoided The Dreaded NC-17 Rating
By BJ COLANGELO
“The First Omen,” a prequel to the 1976 film “The Omen,” was forced to battle with the Motion Picture Association to secure an R-rating, following five different NC-17 ratings.
Creating the sixth film (and the first prequel) in "The Omen" franchise was challenging, as director Arkasha Stevenson discussed during an interview with Fangoria.
The film received the initial NC-17 ratings due to its depiction of intense body horror, which Stevenson argued was unfair, emphasizing that it was central to its theme.
She elaborated, "It's the female body being violated from the inside outwards. If we were going to talk about female body horror, we were going to talk about forced reproduction."
Producer David Goyer agreed with Stevenson, highlighting the MPA's double standards, stating, "I think there is more permissiveness when dealing with male protagonists [...]."
They earned an R-rating, but Stevenson doesn’t regret the battle, stating, “[...]we have to be able to show the female body in a non-sexualized light. I'm very proud of this shot.”