No Safe Spaces Documentary Announces Release Date, Gets into Ratings Battle with MPAA

Dennis Prager and Adam Carolla’s long in production documentary No Safe Spaces will finally be coming to theaters this fall.

On October 25th, the film will be released although it’s not clear whether this is a limited or wide release. The announcement on Facebook mentioned “Details and cities to follow” which could mean the film will be touring in a limited release although we’ll know for sure when tickets go on sale.

The film started production in 2017 and is said to cover the widespread phenomena of conservative and moderate speakers being chased off of college campuses by far-left anti-free speech protesters. The film features interviews from multiple academics and celebrities across the political spectrum including Ben Shapiro, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Alan Dershowitz, Cornel West, Van Jones, and Tim Allen all speaking on the issue of free speech.

Unfortunately, the release is dealing with a minor setback. The MPAA has given the documentary a rating of PG-13 against the wishes of the filmmakers who were hoping for a PG rating.

As reported by the Hollywood Reporter:

The movie stars comedian-podcaster Adam Carolla and radio talk-show host Dennis Prager, the latter of whom sent a letter to the MPAA to protest the rating, which is largely based on a 30-second animated clip of “Firsty,” a walking, talking embodiment of free speech who gets shot up with bullet holes.“Any kid who sees it will probably laugh,” Prager wrote in his letter to MPAA head Charles Rivkin. Prager also notes that Firsty isn’t killed, and he says that he seeks “with all of my work to make content that is suitable for all ages,” though he worries the more restrictive rating will discourage some parents from taking their children to see the movie.“But when it comes to Firsty, we would ask that you reconsider and allow the scene to remain and still achieve a PG rating so that we can reach the widest possible audience. A PG-13 rating would not reinforce people’s faith in MPAA’s ratings,” Prager wrote in his letter to Rivkin, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter.Insiders say the MPAA called the scene where Firsty is shot up “way too strong and violent” for a PG rating.

The decision is a minor setback for a film that Mr. Prager hopes to be family viewing. While the decision doesn’t appear as nakedly political as Unplanned’s R-rating by the MPAA earlier this year, this situation can hopefully be changed prior to the film’s release.

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