Why Are People Calling for the Removal of Nudity and Sex From Film and TV Shows?

Something is going on, and we need to talk about it right now before we let censors go so far that art and storytelling are ruined. No, I'm not overreacting. I'm just responding to one of the weirdest trending topics recently: people demanding the removal of sex and nudity from film and TV. 

I came across this trending thread and thought it was a joke. In the comments, there are even people who want to take kissing out of film and TV. 

After wasting a lot of time wading through this controversy, I tracked everything back to a show on Netflix called You. For those of you who have never seen the show, it's an erotic thriller about obsession, lust, and sex. 

As you can imagine, there's a fair amount of the stuff people want to ban in it. 

An actor in the show, Penn Badgley, recently said he wanted to stop doing sex scenes.  

“Fidelity in every relationship, and especially my marriage, is important to me," Badgley said. "And, yeah, it just got to a point where I didn’t wanna do that.”

Badgley was married in 2017 and while he didn't say any of these scenes put a strain on his marriage, he did say they might negatively impact his career. The actor expanded on this idea, saying, “I mean, you know, think about every male lead you’ve loved. Are they kissing someone? Are they doing a lot more than that? It’s not my desire to."

Now, look, no one has to do these scenes. I think it's got to be tough to be on a very popular TV show where they may be expected, and he will have to work with the showrunners to figure out how his character can move forward without these things.  

But this stance launched the internet into madness. 

I actually saw people advocating to return to the Hays Code, which existed during the Golden Age of Hollywood but was absolutely repressive, racist, and puritanical. 

Now, I'm not suggesting every movie needs sex and nudity. I am a fan of lots of Bollywood titles where you don't even really see kissing. But the idea that every movie should eliminate this stuff is absolutely wild. 

The main argument I've seen is that sex "doesn't move the plot forward." Not only is that just wrong, but it feels reflexive for someone who doesn't watch a lot of movies or TV shows. Think about the sex inBreaking Bad, which shows how Walter White feels empowered once he starts selling drugs. Or the sex in Mad Men, which can be dress-rippingly hot or Jaguar dealership devastating. 

Sex can tell the story of a couple in Game of Thrones that's meant to be together. 

And guess what? Sometimes it doesn't have to do anything but make you hot under the collar. Same with nudity. Sometimes it's just there for vibes. 

Get over it. 

If talent doesn't want to do it, fine. Some people will do it, and some audiences love to see it. Sex made You a hit just like it did with 50 Shades of Grey, Magic Mike, and Bridgerton. 

Hollywood has always been the junction between art and commerce. And when you start making rules that overreach what people can and cannot do or conflating sex and nudity with quality or even the current state of anything is misinformed and boring. 

Every time this stuff trends, I'm going to bring it up, because I think the absolute worst thing that can happen is that these people gain any ground or control inside the industry. 

Let people make art and get out of the way.