By Chris Snellgrove | Published
If you’ve spent a lot of time on social media, you may have noticed the fascinating phenomenon that young people are becoming less and less interested in sex in movies. But the loudest voices are being heard on social media, making it hard to tell whether this is a real phenomenon or just a few bored “puritans” having a laugh. Today, however, real data suggests that sex no longer sells in Hollywood, at least among young people: a recent University of California study “found that 63.5 percent of teens said they preferred that Stories on the big and small screen focus on friendships, while 62.4% said sexual content was not necessary as a plot device.
The numbers don’t lie
These statistics would raise eyebrows on their own, but they are particularly surprising when compared to other recent data. Last year, “51.5% of respondents said they wanted more content about people in platonic relationships, and 47.5% said they weren’t looking for shows or movies where sex was a major element of the plot. »
In other words, last year’s data already indicated that sex in Hollywood films didn’t appeal much to young audiences, and that lack of interest has grown significantly.
As always, several conclusions can be drawn based on this data. For example, many people on social media have pointed out that today’s youth have access to uncensored hardcore pornography for free, at the touch of a button. For this reason, the prospect of seeing nudity or softcore sex in a major Hollywood film simply isn’t as exciting as it was for those who grew up in previous generations.
Does sex equal bad writing?
Others, however, think the data suggests something different: that younger audiences aren’t so much tired of nudity and sex as they are of lazy storytelling. The director of UC’s Center for Scholars & Storytellers, Alisha J. Hines, thinks this data proves that “young people are tired of seeing the same dated and irrelevant romantic tropes on screen.” Instead, she believes that “teens and young adults want to see stories that more authentically reflect a full spectrum of nuanced relationships.”
Granted, some filmmakers can be guilty of using sex as a sort of Hollywood shorthand… something to flash on screen for a quick scene instead of spending time developing the relationships between these characters. Once upon a time, a steamy scene between two hot characters was enough to confirm that they were in love. But it doesn’t reflect the real lives and relationships of young audiences, most of whom now seem turned off by seeing sex on screen rather than turned on.
According to a study by the Centers for Disease Control, the percentage of high school students who have never had sex increased from 45.9% in 1991 to 70% in 2021. This has some benefits, for example, including a sharp decline in teen pregnancy rates and fewer young people are contracting STDs. However, a likely side effect is that the lack of sex has influenced preferences for Hollywood films, because the characters that act out on screen don’t really match the lived experience of the vast majority of young people.
Sex always sells
Interestingly enough, more and more sexual films are on the Hollywood horizon, despite the demonstrable fact that young people are no longer as enthusiastic about on-screen erotica as they once were. Recently, Miller’s daughter had an infamous sex scene with Jenna Ortega (usually a reliable draw for younger audiences) whose explicit nature turned off many teenagers.
If movie studios want to continue producing such explicit content, perhaps they are simply targeting older audiences… a wise move given that more and more teenagers officially prefer playing video games to watching a movie or TV show.
As for us, we’ll be happy if our favorite celebrities continue to find a 2 player for their on-screen shenanigans. And if one partner wants to enter the full Konami code on the other, we are completely here for that.
Source: Variety