One of the most iconic musical fantasy comedy films, ‘Mary Poppins’, saw a change in its rating after 60 years of its release. The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) changed the rating of this Julie Andrews-Dick Van Dyke starrer from U to PG over its use of “discriminatory language.”
The BBFC has now deemed parts of this 1964 classic film unsuitable to watch for children without parental guidance. The film certification body took this decision after the film was resubmitted for a theatrical release in February. The body made this decision because the film used a derogatory word that was originally used by white Europeans about nomadic peoples in southern Africa twice during its runtime.
BBC quoted a spokesperson from the BBFC who said, “Most recently, the film was resubmitted to us in February 2024 for another theatrical re-release, and we reclassified it PG for discriminatory language. ‘Mary Poppins’ (1964) includes two uses of the discriminatory term 'Hottentots'.”
The spokesperson continued, “While ‘Mary Poppins’ has a historical context, the use of discriminatory language is not condemned, and ultimately exceeds our guidelines for acceptable language at U. We, therefore, classified the film PG for discriminatory language.”
Based on this latest development, the 1964 film has now been reclassified from U, which stands for universal, to PG – Parental Guidance. ‘Mary Poppins’ revolves around a nanny who has magical powers. The nanny looks after the kids of a family with Bert, who is a busking chimney sweep. The film won five Academy Awards in 1965 including the Best Actress and Best Song. The movie is based on a book by the same that has been written by PL Travers.
