The Controversy of Cuties

The 'Cuties' Controversy

September 15, 2020

September 15, 2020

Netflix may have bitten off more than it can chew with the movie Mignonnes (Cuties). #CancelNetflix is trending on Twitter and Facebook, while multiple media sources and even notorious forums like 4chan refuse to allow imagery from the film. The company has been trying to push the boundaries for some time now, but has it gone too far? This week, we take a look at the bees nest that Netflix has poked, with a broad view of what fallout, if any, might occur.

Streamer's Spotlight: Did 'Cuties' Cross The Line?

Netflix has become increasingly unpopular among a large segment of the population. Sexually-charged content like

House of Cards

and

The Witcher

did not win the service any fans among a small, although extremely vocal group of mostly conservative Christians. Yet one of its newest movies,

Cuties

, has seemed to rile up not only the religious right that has already had it out for Netflix, but many others who have until now found Netflix's content acceptable.

The issue? A growing number of people across the political and cultural spectrum view Cuties as pedophilia. And in the shadow of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, that's bad press for a company like Netflix.

Is Cuties Pornographic?

The simple answer here is yes. Cuties is currently Rated TV-MA on Netflix, a label that exists right above R on the service. While both R-rated content on Netflix also shows nudity and sex, the M rating is the second-highest rating Netflix has, outside of NC-17. M-rated content on Netflix is reserved for media with "sexual content", "coarse language" and "violence".

Cuties

has a bit of all of these, but the TV-MA rating is primarily due to the sexual content.

Is Netflix Taking Heat?

Oh boy, is it ever. The

to have

Cuties

removed (which is fairly powerless, to be fair), has over 570,000 signatures as of this time of writing. And Netflix pulled the poster it was originally using to advertise the film in response backlash over the film's content. In response to the ad pull, a Netflix spokesperson stated,

"We're deeply sorry for the inappropriate artwork that we used for Mignonnes/Cuties. It was not OK, nor was it representative of this French film which won an award at Sundance. We've now updated the pictures and description."

Though the company released that statement, it still released the film, which contains the same type of imagery presented in the ad.

Culture Differences

It should be noted that Netflix did not produce the film. Accusations of Netflix execs sitting in casting meetings watching young girls twerk are quite a bit off base, but reflect a misunderstanding of how Netflix often works.

The french film,

Mignonnes

, was completed produced in France. Netflix purchased the international broadcast rights to the film, as it does with many other films, and simply slapped its branding on top.

In many ways, the ire many people have should not be so much against Netflix, but against French culture. And French culture has for a long time had a much more relaxed attitude about nudity among children, including young girls. For example, the coming-of-age film

Blue Is the Warmest Color

, which had several lengthy sex scenes between a teenage girl and her adult lover, was rated NC-17 in the US, but was

.

Will Netflix Take a Step Back?

It's unclear whether Netflix will take action to back down from showing Cuties. Most likely, it won't. But the company has more competition on the market, and although its ethos may be to push boundaries within American culture, it may need to make a business choice to play it safe in the future. The company is ultimately bound to its stock value and shareholders. They'll have the final say on whether Netflix keeps courting controversial material.

This Week's Streaming Guide

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3. 'American Barbeque Showdown' Available Friday

Netflix continues its focus on food with its new competitive food show,

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. Stream this Friday. -

4. 72nd Emmy Awards Live Streaming this Sunday

All your favorite stars are back on the red carpet for the 72nd Emmy Awards. Watch on ABC starting at 8 PM EST. -

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