Onward | 2020 | PG | – 1.3.1

Why is “Onward” rated PG? The MPAA rating has been assigned for “action/peril and some mild thematic elements.” The Kids-In-Mind.com evaluation includes a kissing scene, several scenes of teens speeding through traffic nearly crashing into other vehicles, several scenes of teens in danger from falling from cliffs, being trapped in a chamber filled with water, nearly being stabbed by arrows and being chased by a giant fire breathing monster and other magical creatures, and some name-calling and other exclamations. Read our parents’ guide below for details on sexual content, violence & strong language.”

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Animated adventure set among mythical creatures where an elf boy (voiced by Tom Holland) turns 16 and he is bound and determined to find a way to spend one more day with his father, who died when he was very young. With the help of his older brother (voiced by Chris Pratt) and a little magic, they undertake the adventure of a lifetime. Also with the voices of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, John Ratzenberger, Octavia Spencer and Tracey Ullman. Directed by Dan Scanlon. [Running Time: 1:42]

Onward SEX/NUDITY 1

 – An elf woman and a male centaur kiss, and a romantic song plays when a male centaur calls a female elf on her phone.

Onward VIOLENCE/GORE 3

 – Red smoke billows out of a structure and it spreads like tentacles into a school building, destroying everything and builds a monster out of the rocks and rubble: the monster blows flames and moves toward a teen boy and a flying creature with an elf woman on its back swoops around it, slashing off the monster’s wings and tries to stab it; a teen boy tries also to destroy the monster with a magic spell, but the monster blows fire at the boy, he is thrown and drops his magic staff, the monster is stabbed and explodes, throwing rocks and rubble all around. A female creature in a restaurant pulls the head of a costume off a person and blows fire on it (we see the head charred and the person inside the costume is unharmed); the restaurant catches fire and the patrons run out screaming as a partially formed man is nearly crushed by a flaming beam. A teen boy tries a spell to create a bridge over a crevasse and tests it by stepping off the side with a rope tied around his waist; the boy falls and another teen boy holds the rope to bring him back up safely; when the boy tries the spell again, he walks across the open space and falls just as he reaches the other side (he then pulls himself up safely). Two teen boys speed toward a crevasse that they refer to as a “bottomless pit,” they stop at the edge and a partially formed man (feet and legs to the waist) nearly falls over the edge before a teen boy catches him. Two teen boys and a partially formed man enter a passage where they see skeletons slumped on the ground and large beetles skittering around; they step on a booby-trap and a blade cuts the non-formed part of the man away, a huge gelatinous cube descends and moves toward them (anything it touches disintegrates), they run as many arrows are unleashed toward them, they nearly fall in a pit filled with blades, and they are enclosed into a chamber that fills with water and they nearly drown. A teen boy recites a spell trying to bring his father back to life for a day; a stone glows in a magic staff and bolts of energy flash illuminating the feet and legs of a man to the waist as they regenerate; the boy loses his grip on the staff and the stone shatters ending the spell (we see the partially generated person stand up from under a pile of clothes).
► A teen boy drives van and speeds onto highway traffic: they are chased by pixies riding motorcycles and one rider swings a chain that wraps around the boy’s hand and nearly pulls him out of the van, several pixies jump on the boy’s face and cause him to swerve among other cars and trucks and he eventually exits the highway as the motorcycles crash into construction barrels (we see no injuries). Two teens in a van are chased by police cars across a field and along a narrow path; they stop and rig their van to cause a boulder to fall on the path to block the police cars and we see the van crushed under a huge boulder (we see no injuries). Several motorcycles driven by swarms of pixies speed up to a gas station where one pixie is accidentally bumped by a man and the pixie yells at him and threatens him causing him to drop his drink and run away. A pixie is trapped on a car windshield by the wiper blade and the driver swerves off the road crashing the car. A partially formed man bumps into several motorcycles causing them to fall to the ground and the cycle owners yell and chase the man and his two teen sons as they speed away in a van. Two teen boys walk into a dark cave and three unicorns jump out of the shadows toward them, and then run away.
► A police officer pulls a van over and quizzes the two teen boys inside. A teen boy drives erratically, speeding through streets and running over curbs in a few scenes. A teen boy takes a driving lesson and is fearful of merging into highway traffic. A small dragon acting like a dog chases a teen boy and jumps on him in a few scenes; in one scene, it spews a small flame and a woman squirts it with water in an effort to train it. A female creature blows flames on a serving of mozzarella sticks to heat them up and we see them charred. A car breaks down when it runs out of gas and when a teen boy tries a spell to make more gasoline he accidentally shrinks his brother to a miniature size (he recovers later). Two teen boys and a partially formed man float along a river on a giant cheese puff.
► A snake-like creature hisses and we see its forked tongue and snake eyes as it tells two women about the cost of a sword; one of the women is a creature with a scorpion tail that stings the snake creature and it falls to the floor, temporarily paralyzed. Two unicorns hiss at each other and tussle over spilled garbage in a street. A teen boy grabs a younger teen boy and squeezes him in a few scenes; the younger boy spills a bowl of cereal and jellied toast a couple of times. A teen boy grabs his mother and they play-fight until she flips the boy on his back on the floor (there are no injuries). A teen boy jumps out of his van waving a sword in the air (he’s dressed in Viking gear) and calling to his younger brother, who is embarrassed. A teen boy snags another teen boy’s sweatshirt and it tears upsetting the second boy. A teen boy awkwardly asks other teens to come to his house for a birthday party; he becomes embarrassed and walks away. A teen boy reluctantly tries to ask another boy in class to take his feet off his chair (the second boy does not relent). A teen boy is shy and awkward and he seems to be afraid to try new things. Two teen boys exclaim when they are pricked with splinters in separate scenes (we see slightly reddened areas on their fingers). A person wearing a costume trips and falls on the floor (no injuries are shown). A teen boy makes an upper half for his partially regenerated father to look like a head, torso and arms. A female creature talks about two teen boys being in grave danger and being threatened by a curse. A female creature says that two teen boys are “doomed.” A female creature has tattoos of weapons on her arms. A teen boy remembers his older brother pushing him off a diving board to teach him to swim.
► A woman yells at her teenage son about leaving his toys around the house after she steps on an action figure holding a sword. A pixie yells at a partially formed man. A teen boy plays a tape recording of his father’s voice from before the man died and the boy pretends to be speaking to him. A cellphone is shown with a shattered screen. Two teen boys argue about the direction they should drive and one insists on taking “The Path of Peril.” A teen boy talks about having been afraid to say goodbye to his father when the man was in the hospital dying.
► A creature blows flames to light birthday candles on a cake and cuts the cake with a large sword causing it to splatter on the faces of two women standing nearby.

Onward LANGUAGE 1

 – 1 mild anatomical term, name-calling (nut, motley horde, bonkers, beanstalk, mighty beast, lazy, weirdo, screw-up, history buff, terrible), exclamations (oh boy, dang it, what the…, son of a…, dang those kids). | profanity glossary |

Onward SUBSTANCE USE

 – A creature drinks energy drinks rapidly, starts talking faster, and becomes more energized.

Onward DISCUSSION TOPICS

 – Death of a parent, magic, adventure, mythical creatures, trying new things, step parenting, role-playing adventure games, adulthood, challenges, risk taking.

Onward MESSAGE

 – We all need a little magic in our lives.