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Many of us have our parents to thank for the way our movie tastes developed. Part of growing up involves being shown movies by your parents, often ones they remember fondly. When you’re too young to read reviews or know how to pull up a Rotten Tomatoes or IMDb score to see what it’s rated, parents are your main authority.
Despite the importance of parents when it comes to movie-watching, not all movies should or even can be watched with parents. As you get older, your parents might be willing to let you watch more mature films with their supervision. Still, there’s always the risk of awkward movie nights, where the movie gets a little too… full-on, or the parent regrettably forgets about “that one scene” from a movie they hadn’t seen in decades. As such, many movies are best watched without a parent or two on the couch next to you.
Updated July 23, 2025, by Jeremy Urquhart:
Racy content may cause some people to wonder whether there are movies to watch alone without parents, or, more broadly, movies not to watch with parents. Things get a little raunchier and potentially awkward year after year, it seems, and the movies that are not suitable for family viewing seem to becoming more and more widespread. While this following ranking can’t cover all movies that you won’t want to watch with parents, it’s a start, and at least these ones should be avoided on potential family movie nights.
13’Babylon' (2022)
Babylonis a massive movie, and can be quite exhausting to watch, even for those who are used to movies that exceed three hours in length. It’s a non-stop smorgasbord of depravity, drugs, violence, sex, and bad behavior, and there are certainly parts of it that you might not want to watch with the family.
Its length and content are probably two of the main reasons why it failed to make back its large budget at the box office, but the film still has its fans. It might be worth a shot for those not put off by the length, but they’re probably best off watching the movie (especially the first half-hour or so) by themselves.
12’Titane' (2021)
It’s uncommon for ahorror movie to debut at the Cannes Film Festivaland then go on to win the Palme d’Or, but that’s whatTitanemanaged to do. It’s a wild and provocative ride of a movie, starting off in a brazenly confrontational way, containing some very strange sexually charged scenes, and also being graphically violent in parts.
It’s easy to call it the kind of movie that shouldn’t be watched with parents, and it’s possible to go even further and say that even those watching without parents should be strongly cautioned. There is a great deal of shocking material to be found inTitane, and while it’s a powerful and memorable film for sure, it’s also undeniably not going to be for everyone.
Watch on Hulu
11’Crimes of the Future' (2022)
David Cronenbergis a master of making audiences uncomfortable, and while not all his movies can be described as body horror, many of his most famous ones can. He’s unafraid to disturb, shock, and show content both adult and violent in nature on-screen, and that goes for his 2022 film – which was a return to body horror –Crimes of the Future.
Beyond having some horrific imagery, it also serves asboth a crime and science-fiction movie(as made clear by the title), with a complex film noir-type plot that involves synthetic transformation and mutations, and complex surgical procedures done for art purposes. It’s graphic, uncompromising, and very strange stuff, and is guaranteed to give any family movie night the completely wrong vibe.
10’American Pie' (1999)
Arguably the quintessential teen/gross-out comedy, launching sequels, spin-offs, and imitators,American Pieis unapologetically crude, being about four high school students who agree to lose their virginity before Prom Night, no matter what the cost.
Filled with shocking sight gags and plenty of foul language,American Piemight be a fun watch with some friends, but it is not as fun when watched with parents. You don’t want to run the risk of getting into an awkward conversation about whether the film captures your personal high school experience in any way.
9’The Wolf of Wall Street'(2013)
As a director,Martin Scorsesebridges the gap between generations, with many fans young and old. He’s been knocking out diverse and fantastic films from the late 1960s to this very day, showing no signs of slowing, withThe Killers of the Flower Moonslated for a 2023 release.
That doesn’t mean, however, that those from different generations can enjoy all his films together. While 2011’sHugomight make for surprisingly good family viewing, his follow-up,The Wolf of Wall Street,would not. Themovie shows the excess, crime, and debauchery of corrupt Wall Street businessmanJordan Belfortin unflinching detail over three hours – it’s not a film you want to experience in the company of the ‘rents.
Watch on Prime Video
8’Basic Instinct’ (1992)
Paul Verhoevenhides absolutely nothing in hisMichael Douglas/Sharon Stone-starring mystery/thriller about a detective tracking down and becoming entangled with a seductive femme fatale who might also be a serial killer.
The term “erotic thriller” isn’t one that’s used to describe movies too often nowadays, but the label certainly applies toBasic Instinct. You and your folks might enjoy a good murder mystery now and then, but this isn’t one you’ll want to solve together, given the infamous amount of adult content within it, as well as certain… scenes that go on for a very, very long time. Any family who watches this together will find themselves sweating more thanWayne Knightin the film’s notorious police interrogation scene.
7’National Lampoon’s Vacation'(1983)
The originalVacationis surprisingly likely to be mistaken for an edgy but ultimately family-safe comedy. StarringChevy Chasein one of his most famous roles, and centering around a hilariously disastrous vacation, the film does indeed star a family – including two young children – and has a perhaps more well-known and slightly less adult-themed sequel in 1989’sNational Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.
The original, however, makes for far less appropriate family viewing. There’s more foul language and nudity here than parents might remember, and Chase’s character’s perverted qualities are dialed up to 11, compared to its Christmas-themed sequel. Even though that one isn’t perfect for kids of all ages, it’s probably a safer and less awkward choice for families than the originalVacation.
Watch on HBO Max
6’American Psycho' (2000)
The Dark Knightthis ain’t. Despite playing another wealthy, powerful, physically fit, and often violent individual,Christian Bale’s role here as murderous Wall Street serial killer, Patrick Bateman, will make for awkward family viewing for fans ofBatman.
It’s a great film to watch by yourself, of course. It pulls few punches in adapting its even grislier source material, satirizing those with excessive wealth and power through some verydark comedy to be seen in cinema. Yet, to watch almost any part of the film with your parents (except for maybe the iconic business card scene) would make for a deathly uncomfortable experience.
5’Mid90s'(2018)
Jonah Hillis no stranger to swearing, so it’s not surprising that his bittersweet and well-made directorial debut contains so much of it.Mid90stells a very honest story about a 13-year-old coming of age in – you guessed it – the mid-90s.
Importantly, itshows how kids of that age often talk around one another when there are no grown-ups around. With swearing being a new and exciting concept, many kids in their early teens don’t hold back in that department, and neither does this film. Not to be watched with parents, unless a viewer’s prepared to be asked the awkward and inevitable question about whether they talked like that when they were 13.
4’Ghostbusters' (1984)
Ghostbusters… a family classic, right? It’s certainly popular with people of all ages and has had kid-focused spin-offs and toys and various other tie-ins, in the same vein asStar Wars. It’s a story about four down-on-their-luck guys who have the wacky idea to set up a ghost-busting business in New York. What could go wrong?
That weird scene whereDan Aykroydgets his pants taken off by a ghost before something else seems to happen; that’s what can go wrong. Parents may take some comfort in particularly young kids not understanding what’s actually going on, but they’re fresh out of luck if they actually get asked to explain what’s happening.
