Nickelodeon Set To Release Its First American PG-13 Feature

Nickelodeon is all set to release its first PG-13 feature this Friday (October 26), according to The Hollywood Reporter. Director Josh Schwartz’s upcoming comedy Fun Size is the company’s first American foray into the teen-oriented market. The film reportedly received the rating for crude and suggestive material, partying, and language. The rumored underage drinking may have been a contributing factor, as well.

While Fun Size is the first American feature from Nickelodeon to get slapped with a PG-13 rating, this isn’t the first time the company has ventured down this particular path. In 2008, the studio’s British comedy Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging served as Nickelodeon’s first trip into teen-friendly territory.

“We have been looking to define Nickelodeon movies as something not just for children but for everyone, including children,” Paramount vice chair Rob Moore explained to THR. “In the past, there wasn’t much breadth in the target audience.”

While the writer didn’t originally envision Fun Size as a PG-13 effort, he explained that the studio wouldn’t settle for anything too racy. “I think the way I originally wrote it, it would have been R mainly because of language and innuendo,” scribe Max Werner said. “But the studio always wanted it to come in at PG-13.”

Fun Size has been described by some as Project X for the under 17 set. The synopsis at Internet Movie Database puts a finer point on the plot:

“Wren’s Halloween plans go awry when she’s made to babysit her brother, who disappears into a sea of trick-or-treaters. With her best friend and two nerds at her side, she needs to find her brother before her mom finds out he’s missing.”

Fun Size, which stars Victoria Justice, Chelsea Handler, and Ana Gasteyer, opens in theaters on October 26. The trailer for Nickelodeon’s first American PG-13 movie has been embedded below.