Today’s movies show significantly less sex, but the scenes are more graphic, new study finds

A recent study by data analyst Stephen Follows has found that sex and nudity in films has fallen by nearly 40%, per The Economist.

The study analyzed the 250 highest-grossing films from each year since 2000.

“In 2000 less than 20 percent of the highest-grossing movies had no sexual content at all,” The Economist reported. “Today almost half lack it.”

But the movies that do have sex scenes are more graphic. The study pointed to films from 2023 such as “May December,” which included graphic nudity, and “Saltburn” and “Fair Play,” which portrayed graphic sex acts.

The study found that portrayal of other “vices” — profanity, drugs and violence — is happening at essentially the same rate today as in 2000.

Why are there fewer sex scenes in movies?

There are a few studies that could point to the the reason behind the decline in sex scenes.

A UCLA study from last year found that Gen Z wants to see less sex on screen, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The article noted that:

• Fifty-one percent of those polled said they wanted to see more portrayals of friendship and platonic relationships.

• Roughly 47% said that sex “isn’t needed” in the majority of movies and TV shows.

• Forty-four percent said that romance is “overused” in TV shows and movies.

What accounts for Gen Z’s disdain for sex scenes?

A 2021 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that there is a sharp decrease in sexual activity among Gen Z, according to The Guardian.

It found that, in 2021, “30% of teens said they’d had sex at least once before, down from 38% in 2019 and over 50% in decades prior,” The Guardian reported.

In part because of the reduction in sexual content, there are more PG-13 movies than before, as the Deseret News previously reported.

According to Statista, PG-13 movies comprised roughly two-thirds of the “North American cinema market” (box-office revenue in Canada and the U.S.) in 2022. In 2012, PG-13 movies accounted for roughly 50% of the cinema market.

Another factor that could explain the shift is that R-rated movies aren’t performing well at the box office, according to Axios. Most R-rated films are sent directly to streaming, while “more family-friendly action and adventure franchises” are taking over the box office.

“If the greatest chance of box office success is having a PG-13 rating, or not having an R rating, then that’s where the industry really had to go if that was the primary goal,” Comscore senior media analyst Paul Dergarabedian told Axios.

Follows floats his own theories. He suggests that audiences might prefer “content that either avoids sexual themes altogether or handles them with more subtlety,” according to The Economist.

And because sex scenes often result in “more restrictive age ratings or censorship,” Follows suggests that excluding sex scenes might be an effort by major studios to reach a bigger audience.