Stranger Things season 5 age rating explained before you watch 'dark' volume 1
Parents should proceed with caution with Stranger Things season 5...
Stranger Things season 5 will be on everyone’s Netflix watch list this weekend – but you should take heed of its age rating before you press play.
To be clear, Netflix has never aimed Stranger Things at kids. It’s as inspired by The Goonies and E.T. as it is The Thing and (especially with the introduction of Vecna) Nightmare on Elm Street.
Season 4 (which certified it as one of the best Netflix shows ever made) was particularly dark, opening with a bone-breaking, eye-snatching death that teed up some of the most brutal violence in the series.
With Stranger Things season 5 volume 1 premiering on Netflix, here’s what you need to know about its age rating.
Stranger Things season 5 age rating
Stranger Things season 5 doesn’t have an official BBFC age rating. Past seasons have all been given a 15 rating, so it’s safe to assume the new season will be the same.
When you open Netflix, you can see that season 5 is rated 15 for “sex, sex references, violence, injury detail, discrimination, threat, and horror”.
Funnily enough, this means the main cast of the show (Millie Bobby Brown, Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Noah Schnapp) would have been too young to watch it when it first aired.
There’s something else you should bear in mind. In the US, the first few seasons had a TV-14 rating, but it’s since been upgraded to TV-MA.
As outlined by the Federal Communications Commission, this means it could be unsuitable for children under 17.
This shouldn’t be a surprise after the horror of season 4. Plus, the Duffer Brothers told The Times that the fifth season may not be as violent as its predecessor, but it has the “most violent death of any season”.
“The goal was always to scale up each series with the age of the characters and our audience,” they added.
“But then we keep getting new audiences. Hopefully, parents don’t get too mad at us.”
In other words, if you plan to watch season 5 with your kids, proceed with caution. Also, don’t blame us if they get nightmares.
Read more: Stranger Things season 5 release schedule and how long until new episodes drop on Netflix
