I Saw the TV Glow | 2024 | PG-13 | – 4.5.4

Why is “I Saw the TV Glow” rated PG-13? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “violent content, some sexual material, thematic elements and teen smoking.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes an interrupted scene of oral sex without nudity, a discussion of sexuality between teens, a young man cutting his chest open without blood, the death of parents, scenes of violent acts on a TV show including people’s hearts being cut out and people being buried alive, a young man having a panic attack, a reference to child abuse, and some strong language. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

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Two teenage loners (Justice Smith & Brigette Lundy-Paine) share a passion for a mysterious TV show, and when the show is abruptly cancelled, they struggle to make sense of life, identity and feelings of isolation. Also with Ian Foreman, Helena Howard, Lindsey Jordan, Danielle Deadwyler, Fred Durst and Conner O’Malley. Directed by Jane Schoenbrun. [Running Time: 1:40]

I Saw the TV Glow SEX/NUDITY 4

 – A teen boy opens an office door and finds a man and a woman inside with the woman on her knees in front of the seated man (oral sex is implied); the man quizzes the young man about what he saw later and suggests that the woman would do the same for him.
► A teen girl sits behind a teen boy on the floor and lowers her shirt to draw and outline a small ghost on the back of his neck (like on a TV show that they watch); she touches his bare shoulder tenderly and they are seen sleeping next to each other fully clothed (no sexual activity is suggested). A character shaped like the moon licks the face of a young woman in a TV show.
► A young man hugs a young woman saying how much he missed her. A teen girl tells a teen boy, “I like girls,” and asks if he does and he says that he doesn’t know. A teen girl is upset after her ex-friend accused her of trying to touch her breast; she says that she did not.
► A teen girl wears a tank top that reveals the outline of her nipples and breasts. A singer wears a corset that reveals cleavage and her legs to the hips with sheer stockings. A young man wears a dress in a couple of scenes. A shirtless young man is seen in a mirror and we see his bare chest, abdomen and back.

I Saw the TV Glow VIOLENCE/GORE 5

 – During a birthday party at a party center, a young man screams in a room with many other people and says, “Help me, I’m dying,” he collapses while everyone in the room is silent and motionless and we see the young man in the restroom with some dark-colored globs in the sink; the young man holds a box cutter and cuts his chest open (we see the flesh separate without blood) and glowing light is emitted as he gasps deeply.
► A young woman in a TV show is grabbed by a character and she screams while the character cuts out her heart (we see a heart beating on a plate as it is placed in a large fridge); something is pumped into the young woman’s mouth, and she is seen in an open grave where she drools the blue liquid as dirt is shoveled on top of her as we hear that she was buried alive. We hear thumping sounds coming from a basement and a man goes to find his son with his head inside a TV with sparks flashing and the young man screams and vomits a torrent of light. A young woman in a TV show lies in an open grave and spits out blue-tinged goo. A teen boy says that his friend disappeared and all that they found was her TV set on fire in the backyard; we see a TV set in flames and the plastic inside drips as it melts. A young man tackles a young woman to the ground and runs away. We understand that a teen boy’s mother was in the hospital and that she died. We hear that a young man’s father had a stroke and died.
► A young man driving on a dark road stops when there is a downed power line on the road with sparks shooting from the severed cable. A character shaped like the moon on a TV show is seen with its mouth stretching open oddly.
► A teen girl talks about her stepfather breaking her nose. A woman seems ill and asks her teen son how he feels about her health scare. We hear a man stomping and yelling in a house and a teen girl says that she needs to leave or she will die. Two teens plan to run away together. A young woman talks about paying someone to bury her alive and that he did; she describes urinating and defecating on herself and forcing herself to create enough saliva to drink.
► A character on a TV show attacks a clown character and we hear the slashing of a blade and squishing (we do not see the act); a teen watching the show cries. A teen boy sees flashing lights over him (like lights from a TV screen) while he lies on the floor trying to sleep. A woman drops her teen son at a friend’s house and he pretends to ring the bell; when she drives away, the boy walks to another friend’s house in the rain.
► A teen boy says that he wishes the ice cream man never went away after the summer and we see a giant ice cream cone person with ice cream melting from its eyes and mouth standing in a room. A TV show depicts the moon with a face that smiles and moves and it is referred to as “Mr. Melancholy.” A teen boy sits in the woods alone with a fire burning and we hear a voiceover saying that he was unable to sleep.
► A teen boy says, “There’s something wrong with me,” and says that he is afraid to find out what is inside of him. A young woman talks about time not moving normally and that things are out of whack. A young woman says that she has been inside the universe of a TV show. A teen girl talks about a TV show with characters that have a “psychic connection” and other characters that threaten them. A teen boy watches an ad on TV and we hear a voiceover saying, “It can’t hurt you if you don’t think about it.” A teen boy asks his mother to ask his father if he can have a sleepover at a friend’s house (he seems afraid of his father). A teen boy asks to watch a TV show that airs late at night and his father says, “Isn’t that a show for girls?” A singer screams loudly on a stage during a performance.
► A teen boy drools onto cotton candy and part of it melts (we see the saliva stream).

I Saw the TV Glow LANGUAGE 4

 – 4 scatological terms, 2 anatomical terms, 4 mild obscenities, name-calling (baby, drip, creep, nasty little demons, crazy, out of whack, burn out kid, insane, cheesy, Big Bad), exclamations (super, heck), 6 religious exclamations (e.g. my God, oh my God, Jesus). | profanity glossary |

I Saw the TV Glow SUBSTANCE USE

 – A young woman smokes something outside a house and another young woman says that it is not a cigarette (it is not clear what she is smoking).

I Saw the TV Glow DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Mythology, TV shows, doubting who you really are, fitting in, child abuse, the influence of TV shows on people, fantasy vs. reality, hallucinations, death of a parent, demonology, destiny, fear, trust, survival.

I Saw the TV Glow MESSAGE

 – It can be hard to keep track of what’s real. Memories are traps.