Don’t Look Up | 2021 | R | – 7.5.9

Why is “Don’t Look Up” rated R? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “language throughout, some sexual content, graphic nudity and drug content.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes non-sexual male and female nudity, a sex scene with partial nudity, an implied sex scene, several kissing scenes, a few attempts to divert a comet that end with rockets exploding and systems failing, a riot scene with looting and destruction, many arguments about a potential disaster and political involvement in the situation, and nearly 50 F-words and other strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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When two astronomers (Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence) discover a comet speeding toward Earth that will cause an extinction level event, they go to great pains to convince the authorities that it is real. However, they instead encounter indifference and a political backlash. Also with Meryl Streep, Cate Blanchett, Rob Morgan, Jonah Hill, Mark Rylance, Tyler Perry, Timothée Chalamet, Ron Perlman, Ariana Grande and Kid Cudi. Directed by Adam McKay. [Running Time: 2:18]

Don’t Look Up SEX/NUDITY 7

 – A man and a woman have sex: we see her bare breasts as she thrusts on top of the man. A woman puts her hand on a man’s thigh and caresses him, they kiss passionately in a hallway and then burst through a door; we see them later lying in bed (sex is implied).
► Fully nude people walk out of a space pod, down a ramp and onto a planet’s surface (we see breasts, abdomens, buttocks, male genitals and female pubic hair). A man is shown shirtless and we see his bare back. A woman wears a low-cut top revealing cleavage in a photo. A painting of two nude men is seen and we see their bare chests and abdomens. A woman wears low-cut dresses that reveal cleavage in several scenes. A woman wears a bikini that reveals cleavage, bare abdomen, back and legs.
► A man and a woman kiss in a meeting. A man asks a woman, “You wanna make out?” and she replies, “Why not?” and they kiss. A woman kisses a man. A man tries to kiss a woman and she pulls away but then kisses him and straddles his lap. A man and a woman kiss on TV. A man sniffs a woman’s hair.
► A husband and his wife hug and he apologizes for having an affair with another woman. A woman tells a man that she has slept with two former presidents. A woman invites a married man to join her for drinks and he accepts. A man asks a woman, “Can I touch your hair in a non-sexual way?” and the woman is put off by the comment. A man makes a sexually suggestive remark about his mother. A man asks a woman to marry him and she says, “Sure, why not.” A man says that his mother asked if his girlfriend was a lesbian. A comment is made about someone not “wearing any panties.” Someone says that a woman sent pictures of her private parts to someone else. A remark is made about how “hot” a man is.
► A woman wearing an off-the-shoulder dress that reveals cleavage and a married man enter a hotel room where the man’s wife is waiting and she confronts him the first woman about them having an affair. A woman adjusts her breast in her dress before going live on TV and asks a man sitting next to her, “Are the ladies OK?” as she leans over toward him.

Don’t Look Up VIOLENCE/GORE 5

 – A house rumbles, the ground heaves and a cloud of boulders and rubble spreads across the globe; we see a whale cut in half floating through the air (some bloody tissue is visible) and we understand that the planet has been destroyed. A woman approaches a creature on a planet and reaches out toward it, when it attacks her with its long beak, killing her. People throw bottles at a man at a podium and they shatter (we see that he has blood on his forehead). Drones are launched toward a comet and several fail while others explode; there is a system malfunction and people run out of a control room yelling as a comet speeds through the atmosphere. A man shoots a gun at a comet speeding through the atmosphere. Pods land on a planet and a couple crash and explode (we understand that the occupants died).
► Armed agents surround a woman and demand that she get on her knees; they accuse her of breaching national security. People stop their cars and look into the sky as a comet hurtles toward Earth. We see an explosion and a giant mushroom cloud and hear that a rocket launch in Russia failed.
► A woman is shown with a bag over her head as she is driven by agents to a secure location in a couple of scenes. A man is shown with a bag over his head while in the backseat of a car. A man and a woman contact a government office and report that a comet will hit Earth in 6 months and 14 days. People discuss leaking classified information to the press. A woman shoots a laser into the sky and sees a comet; she tracks its trajectory and speed and becomes concerned. A manned rocket is launched to intercept a comet and people cheer. People riot and break shop windows in protest. People throw empty liquor bottles and light tubes against walls shattering them.
► A person says, “All of humankind will be extinct.” A person says, “The world is ending.” People talk about, “the end of times.” A man talks about going on a “suicide mission.” A man talks about his family dog dying. A reference is made to a man having full clearance and access after making a large donation to a presidential campaign. A man and woman turn away their daughter when she wants to come home. A man yells, “We are all going to die.” People argue about power. A man predicts how people will die; he tells a man, “You will die alone,” and tells a woman that she will be killed by some kind of creature. A woman is ridiculed for being too dramatic about a situation. A woman yells, “Why aren’t people terrified?” Photos of a woman screaming are shown. People talk about people needing media training. A man tells a woman, “You look so bad when you cry.” A picture of a woman’s face is manipulated to incorporate a Pinocchio nose. A man declares that we are running short on minerals and that we should mine them from other planets. A person says, “We really did have everything.” A man is dismissive and insults a woman in several scenes.
► A man hyperventilates and holds his side during a panic attack. A woman vomits into a can (we hear retching and do not see goo).

Don’t Look Up LANGUAGE 9

 – About 48 F-words and its derivatives, 6 sexual references, 23 scatological terms, 9 anatomical terms, 6 mild obscenities, name-calling (crazy, nuts, planet killer, atrocious, boy with a dragon tattoo, freak show, old, hoax, mentally ill, disaffected youth, offensive, half-witted, crackpot, baby doll, fake, dope, sad, sociopaths, man, shameless capitalist, disgustingly rich, sweetheart, far right folks, baby, yelling lady, cheap, cheap, horrific, prepubescent, heavy hitter, zinger, insane, near-miss hysteria, idiot, corrupt), exclamations (what would Carl Sagan do, this is not real right, oh my, oh boy, this can’t be happening, oh gosh, grow up, you gotta be kidding me), 10 religious profanities (GD), 30 religious exclamations (e.g. my God, oh God, for God’s sake, Jesus Christ, Jesus, God Bless you, make me a god, Amen, a brush with the devil, Holy [scatological term deleted], I swear to God, a young girl says a prayer). | profanity glossary |

Don’t Look Up SUBSTANCE USE

 – A woman says that she has to “go get high” and we see her smoking marijuana, a man rubs his nose several times as if he has been snorting cocaine, a man talks about having taken Molly and that it is kicking in, a woman smokes marijuana in a few scenes, a woman drops off several vials of prescription medication including for depression and anxiety and restless leg syndrome and erectile dysfunction, and a woman grabs a Xanax tablet from a man and swallows it in a couple of scenes. People drink beer and cider in a lab, a woman says she needs a shot of Jack, a man talks about hoping that a couple of DUIs will disappear, people drink from bottles while standing around a flaming barrel, people drink wine with a meal, a man and woman drink at a bar, and a man and a woman drink wine. A woman searches her office (in the Oval Office) for a cigarette, and lights and smokes one, a woman smokes near a “flammable” sign, and a woman smokes in the Oval Office in another scene.

Don’t Look Up DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Political power, wealth, destruction of humankind, NASA, science, breakups, freedom, fear, conspiracy theories, bipolar disorder, national security, infidelity, evolution, algorithms, pride, doubt, exploitation, profit, virtue signaling, opposition.

Don’t Look Up MESSAGE

 – Listen to the scientists because they know better.