Harold and the Purple Crayon | 2024 | PG | – 1.3.1

Why is “Harold and the Purple Crayon” rated PG? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “mild action and thematic elements.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a man kissing a woman on the hand, a man and woman hugging, several scenes of dangerous and risky activities that end without injury, two men fighting with large weapons that cause no lasting injuries, a few scenes of bullying, several arguments and misunderstandings, and some name-calling. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.

---

When Harold, the beloved children’s book character (Zachary Levi), manages to use his crayon to leave his storybook world, he has to grow up quickly while learning about how the real world actually works. Also with Lil Rel Howery, Benjamin Bottani, Zooey Deschanel, Tanya Reynolds, Jemaine Clement, Alfred Molina and Pete Gardner. Directed by Carlos Saldanha. [Running Time: 1:32]

Harold and the Purple Crayon SEX/NUDITY 1

 – A man kisses a woman on the hand and tries to suggest to her that her son needs a father figure (implying him). A man and a woman hug. A man appears to be pining for a woman and tries to woo her in several scenes. A man invites a woman to be with him in an imaginary world and she declines saying that she is seeing someone else. A man calls a woman he doesn’t know and says, “I’ll be your old man if you’ll be my old lady.”
► A woman wears a low-cut top and a short skirt that reveal cleavage and her bare legs to the upper thighs. A man reads a description of a character in a fantasy novel including his rippling abs, pecs and nipples.

Harold and the Purple Crayon VIOLENCE/GORE 3

 – Two men ride a bicycle on a road crowded with traffic; the driver turns in front of an oncoming car, the car swerves and we see the two men on the ground (one man has a bloody cut on his finger, but is otherwise uninjured and they both moan) and the car has a flat tire. A man flies an airplane through a city and nearly crashes into a building, ejects himself and two passengers and they float to the ground by a parachute, landing hard and rolling down a hill (they seem unharmed). A woman drives a tricycle through traffic going the wrong way causing cars to swerve and honk. A man flips another man over his shoulder and on his back on the ground (he moans briefly).
► A man hits another man in the leg with his cane when the first man approaches him as if they know each other. Two men face off with crayons and use them to create weapons; one throws an axe at the other that uses a tree stump to block it, one man launches a giant boulder at the other that creates a giant spring to bounce it back at the first man, one man eats a crayon and we see his hands and body glowing as he develops magical powers and he slams a bladed weapon into the ground that causes the ground to crack and molten lava bubbles out of the cracks as people try to get to safety. Two teen boys bully another boy in school and try to take something away from him; he accidentally hits one of the boys in the nose with his elbow (we see a little blood) and they are reprimanded and sent to the principal’s office. Two men and a woman tumble through brush and into a park when entering the real world. A boy blows a whistle that we cannot hear but one man (that had been a moose in a drawn world) hears it and complains of how loud the sound is. A boy draws what he calls a spider-fly with large teeth and it hisses; the boy says that it is poisonous and it eats a butterfly as it flits by and the boy and a man run out of the room. A Puma walks through the aisles of a store and is later seen chewing up a stuffed animal. A woman tries to make another woman leave a restaurant when she is disruptive and she and other staff members chase her as she jumps on tables and out the front door where she is chased by police, she climbs a tree to get away and she is later tackled to the ground and taken to jail with two men. When three people are locked in a jail cell, one of them creates a distraction, another sneaks into the property room to retrieve a crayon that the third uses to draw a wrecking ball to break the wall open so they can get out. Two teen boys lock a third boy in a janitor’s closet and he draws a winged dragon that breaks the door open and chases the other boys through the hall blowing flames at them. A man and a teen boy are locked in chains against a stone wall in what we are told is a dungeon and the ground in front of them crumbles away creating a deep chasm. A man and a teen boy float in a hot air balloon and chase a man driving a horse-drawn chariot; the man in the balloon throws a cable to the ground knocking the other man down. A winged creature flies over a man and sprays fire around him; the man throws a chain that wraps around the creature and pulls it to the ground. A woman climbing a stone wall is zapped by a flash of energy and she falls to the ground (she’s OK Later). A spider-fly flies into a man’s open mouth and when a moose slams into the man’s chest, he spits the spider-fly back out. A winged dragon blows flames on a door and it burns.
► Three drawn characters (a man, a moose and a porcupine) float in the air on a drawn cable until a swarm of creatures with sharp teeth swoop toward them and bite the cable; the characters fall toward the ground and the man draws a cape that helps him float, he catches the porcupine, and the moose crashes to the ground pushing his nose into his face and breaking an antler (we see him fine later). A man draws a butterfly in the air and when he blows on it, it becomes real and flutters around. A character with sharp teeth blows a flame at three other characters, leaving them with char marks on their faces (they’re ok). A drawing of a creature with sharp teeth startles other drawn characters and they run away. Porcupine tines sound like sword blades when they are touched together. A man turns into a moose briefly when he is afraid. A man draws propellers on top of a helicopter ride in a store and the helicopter takes off with a young boy inside, his mother grabs onto the bottom and is pulled through the store knocking down displays, another woman grabs on and a fire starts when a light fixture falls on the ground (one of the women is shown on a stretcher later). A man drives through a safety gate in a parking lot and breaks it. A man panics when his friends disappear. A tire blows out of a car and sparks fly where the metal wheel hits the road.
► Two men complain about doing a job in a store after only a few minutes. A man is upset when a publisher says that they are not interested in a book he is writing. A woman is reprimanded by her boss about using her phone for personal calls at work. A police officer says, “You have to humor the crazies,” in a couple of scenes. A boy says that he got an unsatisfactory grade on an assignment at school. A woman says of her job at a store, “I did always want to trash that place.”

Harold and the Purple Crayon LANGUAGE 1

 – 1 mild scatological term, name-calling (constipated, Smurf, grown man in a onesie, strange, crazies, terrifying, punk, weirdo, insane, dumb drawings, messed up guy, so weird, morons, soul crushing, stupid, improve guy, boring, meanies), exclamations (aw come on, get lost, shhh, whoa, oh my goodness, wow, oh gosh, oh no), 5 religious exclamations (e.g. oh my God, oh God). | profanity glossary |

Harold and the Purple Crayon SUBSTANCE USE

 – None.

Harold and the Purple Crayon DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Adventure, friends, death of a parent, growing up, reality vs. imaginary, bullies, revenge, unrequited love, understanding death, imaginary friends, giving up on dreams, magic crayons, vegetarians.

Harold and the Purple Crayon MESSAGE

 – Tell your own story; don’t rely on anyone else to do so.