The 1964 film Mary Poppins just had its age rating in the U.K. changed by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) and fans are wondering why. Here is all you need to know.
Why did the Mary Poppins age rating change?
The age rating for Mary Poppins was changed by the British Board of Film Classification for featuring “discriminatory language.”
Mary Poppins recently received an age rating change from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC). It was changed from U, which means Universal, to PG, which stands for Parental Guidance, on account of “discriminatory language.”
According to a BBFC spokesperson who spoke to outlets such as Variety and The Independent UK, the age rating change from Universal to PG was due to two uses of the word “Hottentots” by Mary Poppins in the film. This term was reportedly first used by White Europeans as a racial slur towards the Khoekhoe, an indigenous South African community of nomadic herders. The BBFC further stated that this word was used by Reginald Owen’s Admiral Boom when talking about the chimney sweep people, whose faces were covered in soot.
The first instance when Boom reportedly used the word was when he asked Michael, a young child whether he was going on an adventure to “defeat Hottentots.”
As per The Independent, this reclassification of Mary Poppins’ age rating is only going to affect the film’s theatrical re-release and not the home media versions of the film.
Mary Poppins is not the first Disney film to have its rating altered as Ratatouille, another Disney film, received a rating change from U to PG on account of “mild bad language” and “comic violence,” as per News 5 Cleveland.
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