Horror movie ad pulled after breaching violence standards
A still from the offending ad
Ad Standards has upheld a complaint against Universal Pictures over a TV advertisement for the upcoming horror film “Weapons”, ruling that a trailer featuring children in distress crossed the line.
The 30-second TVC aired across several free-to-air networks during prime-time shows including The Block, Masterchef, and AFL broadcasts. Media placement was by Universal Pictures’ media agency partner Essencemediacom.
The ad, narrated by a child, showed children breaking windows, jumping through them and running down dark streets.
The complainant said they were “bewildered” that the networks would allow a horror trailer during “a family show” like The Block or Masterchef. They claim it breached Section 2.3 of the AANA Code of Ethics, which pertains to violence.
“There was no warning to the viewer about distressing images or the use of children in a horror movie. I was disturbed by the images and content of the movie,” the complaint reads.
“It left me feeling frightened and anxious. Regardless of how sensitive I might be, I feel this advert would have made other parents feel anxious and revolted.”
The film’s official trailer is below.
Section 2.3 of the AANA Code of Ethics says advertising “shall not present or portray violence unless it is justifiable in the context of the product or service advertised”.
Universal Pictures, on behalf of Warner Bros Discovery, defended the campaign, arguing that the scenes were in fact consistent with the product: “Weapons is a horror film which contains numerous scenes which could be scary in nature and suspenseful. It would therefore be reasonable to justify that our advertising materials have been produced within the context of the product being advertised.”
In its response to the complaint, Universal Pictures also outlined that all content is broadcast on free-to-air television once rated by the Australian Classification Board, following compliance regulations. It said it also liaised with Free TV Australia’s Clear Ads (formerly the Commercials Advice Division or CAD), and got a “H” classification which permits broadcast at any time of day, except during children’s programming.
With Clear Ads classifications allowing horror trailers in prime-time slots, the burden often falls on creative execution, and community reaction, to draw the line. This highlights an ongoing tension in film marketing of how to authentically sell horror without crossing boundaries in mainstream media environments.
The Ad Standards Community Panel found that this ad went too far. While some menace is permissible when marketing horror films, the majority of the panel ruled that the depiction of children leaping through glass windows “suggested direct harm to children” and was likely to “cause alarm to most audiences”.
The panel argued the inclusion of this particular scene, the children breaking and jumping through the glass, was not necessary in the promotion of the movie.
Universal Pictures confirmed the campaign was “fully discontinued” after the panel’s judgement, stating: “We are committed to ensuring our advertising aligns with the relevant industry codes and community standards by following all the necessary guidelines & processes as we did in this case.”
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