Why is the Daddio movie rated R? Explained

Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn starrer Daddio has resurfaced on the internet after its initial release on June 28, 2024. Directed by Christy Hall, the drama features Dakota Johnson as a young woman who is returning from a trip, and engages in a series of revealing discussions with her taxi driver, played by Sean Penn.

It debuted at the 50th Telluride Film Festival on September 1, 2023, and hit theaters in the United States and Canada in June 2024. The film features mature content themes, including explicit nudity and profanity so it has an R-rating.

It opens with a graphic depiction of a car accident’s aftermath, featuring a twisted, steaming car that is flipped upside down. There’s also a scene involving a young girl restrained and struggling within an empty bathtub.

The risqué content is stark, with nudity, explicit, s*x-related dialogue, and texting, including solicitations for provocative photos. The language throughout is robust and offensive, with frequent use of profanities, alongside raw depictions of urination and obscene gestures.

These elements collectively ensure the film is strictly suited for an adult audience, given its graphic nature and mature themes.

---

Daddio's R-rated certifications explored

Dakota Johnson (Image sourced from Hercules Film Fund and TeaTime Pictures)

Daddio captures an intense conversation between a taxi driver played by Sean Penn and his passenger, played by Dakota Johnson, weaving through subjects like s*xuality and vulnerability.

Given its themes and explicit content, the movie has been branded with an R rating in the United States due to "language throughout, s*xual material, and brief graphic nudity." The categorization aligns with the Motion Picture Association's guidelines, which reserve the R rating for films that include adult material such as harsh language, intense violence, or explicit s*xual content.

Internationally, Daddio received varied classifications reflective of different cultural standards and sensitivities. For instance, in Australia, it's rated MA15+, suitable only for viewers over the age of 15, with a similar advisory against strong coarse language and nudity.

In contrast, the film is considered less severe in Germany, where it's rated for audiences 12 and older, indicating a more relaxed approach to s*xual content and language. In Russia, the movie jumps to an 18+ rating which shows a stricter stance on adult themes.

Comparing Daddio to other films with similar content can illustrate industry standards more clearly. Movies like Blue Valentine or Shame, both of which show complicated adult relationships and display explicit scenes, also garnered R ratings in the U.S.

Dakota Johnson (Image sourced from Hercules Film Fund and TeaTime Pictures)

These films, like Daddio, limit their audience to adults, which ensures that the mature themes discussed are processed with an appropriate level of emotional and intellectual maturity.

---

Qantas flight incident related to Daddio explored

Recently, Daddio grabbed headlines for an incident during a Qantas flight from Sydney to Tokyo, when passengers aboard were unexpectedly exposed to the film.

The in-flight entertainment system usually allows passengers to choose their movies, but the crew inadvertently played Daddio to the entire plane, including children. This led to an uncomfortable situation because the film includes distinctly adult-oriented content.

Reddit post about the incident (Image via Reddit)

One passenger expressed their discomfort on social media, noting, "The movie they played was extremely inappropriate. It featured graphic nudity and a lot of s*xting – the kind where you could literally read the texts on screen without needing headphones. It took almost an hour of this before they switched to a more kid-friendly movie, but it was super uncomfortable for everyone, especially with families and kids onboard."

The mishap triggered a swift apology from Qantas. The airline's spokesperson admitted the oversight and stated to The Guardian:

"The movie was clearly not suitable to play for the whole flight and we sincerely apologize to customers for this experience."

They further clarified that all screens were changed to a family-friendly movie for the rest of the flight, which is standard procedure when individual movie selection is not available.

---

The movie is available to stream on Apple TV and Amazon Prime Video.