History AvoidTheDreadedGRating / AnimatedFilms

* ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron'' is an interesting case. It is the first film in the Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon to be rated PG since there was enough violence and scary elements to justify it. However, Jeffrey Katzenberg was afraid that the original cut would receive an R since the PG-13 rating hadn't been introduced just yet. He inverted this trope by cutting out 12 minutes of footage before its release.

* The sole content descriptor for the movie of ''WesternAnimation/CloudyWithAChanceOfMeatballs'' is "brief mild language" (more than likely referring to Mayor Shelbourne at one point describing Swallow Falls as a "hellhole"). This was an attempt to nudge the movie towards an older audience.

* ''WesternAnimation/AllDogsGoToHeaven'', rated G, provides an inversion. Carface was going to shoot Charlie with a tommy gun, which would have given the film a PG rating. His weapon was changed to a RayGun.

* ''WesternAnimation/PAWPatrolTheMightyMovie is rated PG for "mild action and peril" Considering it's based on a show for preschoolers (and the first PAW Patrol movie was rated G) this might mean the G rating is near extinction.

* ''WesternAnimation/AllDogsGoToHeaven'', rated G, provides an inversion. Carface was going to shoot Charlie with a tommy gun, which would have given the film a PG-rating. His weapon was changed to a RayGun.

** ''WesternAnimation/HomeOnTheRange'' got a PG for this one line alone, right around the time the G-rating was falling out of fashion:

** ''[[WesternAnimation/TheGrinch2018 The Grinch]]'' almost seems like a G-rated film, but a suggestive shot that appears when the Grinch is working out, as well as a joke involving Cindy's invention accidentally removing her friend's costume, might have been added to bump it up to PG.

* Creator/{{Pixar}} originally averted this trope, but began to play it straight by [[TurnOfTheMillennium the late 2000s]], beginning with ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'' for their original films and ''WesternAnimation/FindingDory'' for sequels of G-rated films. Forbes [[http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2016/05/11/finding-dory-and-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-get-surprising-ratings/ discussed]] the latter's case. Before this, the only PG-rated Pixar film was ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles1'', which featured heavy violence and adult themes to justify it. However, in 2011, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' got the G rating, despite having intense violence on par with ''The Incredibles''. In 2017, ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'' was also rated G, despite having slightly more mature content than [[WesternAnimation/Cars1 the first film]]. In 2019, ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' also received a G rating, though it was a bit LighterAndSofter than [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory3 the previous film]], which was also rated G in early 2010, just before the MPAA changed its rules.

* ''WesternAnimation/AllDogsGoToHeaven'' provides an inversion. Carface was going to shoot Charlie with a tommy gun, which would have given the film a PG-rating. His weapon was changed to a RayGun.

* ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGoToTheMovies'' [[https://www.trailer-track.com/2018/01/04/in-the-pipeline-first-trailer-for-teen-titans-go-to-the-movies-incoming added uses of the words "darn", "damn" and "hell",]] as well as Raven mentioning Libyan terrorists as a nod to ''Film/BackToTheFuture'', to bump it up to PG. Though it's downplayed in that [[WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo the show it's based on]] is rated TV-PG.

** Played straight with their CashCowFranchise ''WesternAnimation/IceAge''. The first film was a comedy with lighthearted moments, but some dark and intense ones to balance it out. Many of the scary moments in the film would justify the PG rating it got. The [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeTheMeltdown second film]] ''was'' initially rated G, but was appealed and got a PG for mild language and ''innuendo'', a rather unusual move for a kids' movie. By the time the [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeDawnOfTheDinosaurs next]] [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeContinentalDrift three]] [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeCollisionCourse films]] came out, PG became the default and all the other films were rated as such.

* The association between Disney and the "G" rating led Jeffrey Katzenberg to deliberately invoke this for the Creator/DreamworksAnimation films, either by [[WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}} including a bunch of dirty jokes]] or [[WesternAnimation/Madagascar1 having a lion]] [[GroinAttack getting a low blow]] [[CurseCutShort and a zebra nearly uttering a]] [[PrecisionFStrike Precision MF-Strike]], or [[WesternAnimation/SharkTale featuring a shark]] being KilledOffForReal.

* Creator/{{Pixar}} originally averted this trope, but began to play it straight by [[TurnOfTheMillennium the late 2000s]], beginning with ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'' for their original films and ''WesternAnimation/FindingDory'' for sequels of G-rated films. Forbes [[http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2016/05/11/finding-dory-and-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-get-surprising-ratings/ discussed]] the latter's case. Before this, the only PG-rated Pixar film was ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', which featured heavy violence and adult themes to justify it. However, in 2011, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' got the G rating, despite having intense violence on par with ''The Incredibles''. In 2017, ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'' was also rated G, despite having slightly more mature content than [[WesternAnimation/Cars1 the first film]]. In 2019, ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' also received a G rating, though it was a bit LighterAndSofter than [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory3 the previous film]], which was also rated G in early 2010, just before the MPAA changed its rules.

* The sole content descriptor for the movie of ''WesternAnimation/CloudyWithAChanceOfMeatballs'' is "brief mild language". This was an attempt to nudge the movie towards an older audience.

* The association between Disney and the "G" rating led Jeffrey Katzenberg to deliberately invoke this for the Creator/DreamworksAnimation films, either by [[WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}} including a bunch of dirty jokes]] or [[WesternAnimation/{{Madagascar}} having a lion]] [[GroinAttack getting a low blow]] [[CurseCutShort and a zebra nearly uttering a]] [[PrecisionFStrike Precision MF-Strike]], or [[WesternAnimation/SharkTale featuring a shark]] being KilledOffForReal.

* Creator/{{Pixar}} originally averted this trope, but began to play it straight by [[TurnOfTheMillennium the late 2000s]], beginning with ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'' for their original films and ''WesternAnimation/FindingDory'' for sequels of G-rated films. Forbes [[http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2016/05/11/finding-dory-and-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-get-surprising-ratings/ discussed]] the latter's case. Before this, the only PG-rated Pixar film was ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', which featured heavy violence and adult themes to justify it. However, in 2011, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' got the G rating, despite having intense violence on par with ''The Incredibles''. In 2017, ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'' was also rated G, despite having slightly more mature content than [[WesternAnimation/{{Cars}} the first film]]. In 2019, ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' also received a G rating, though it was a bit LighterAndSofter than [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory3 the previous film]], which was also rated G in early 2010, just before the MPAA changed its rules.

* ''WesternAnimation/WatershipDown'' added Kehaar saying "PISS OFF!" and "Damn", just to absolutely make sure that an animated film based off a novel by a part-time animal rights activist featuring adorable animals engaging in gory violence wasn't shown to small children. It didn't work in the [=UK=], where it got a U rating, while the [=US=] passed it off with a much less lenient PG rating.

* Creator/BlueSkyStudios actually deserves credit for '''inverting''' this trope. They were specifically aiming for G's, not only on ''WesternAnimation/{{Rio}}'' and [[WesternAnimation/Rio2 its sequel]], but also on ''WesternAnimation/HortonHearsAWho'' and ''WesternAnimation/ThePeanutsMovie''. Except for ''Rio'' at first, as well as ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'', they've been successful at earning G ratings without their box office performances being threatened.

* The closest Creator/IlluminationEntertainment had to get a G rating was ''WesternAnimation/TheLorax'', and that's rated PG due to brief language (O'Hare sounding like he said the word "dammit") and a brief scene with a woman in a bikini.

* A weird aversion happened with two movies based on adult animation in Quebec: there, both ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHeadDoAmerica'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'' carry a G rating, despite the source material not being for kids.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheBlackCauldron'' is an interesting case. It is the first film in the Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon to be rated PG since there was enough violence and scary elements to justify it. However, Jeffrey Katzenberg was afraid that the original cut would receive an R-rating since PG-13 hadn't been introduced just yet. He inverted this trope by cutting out 12 minutes of footage before its release.

* Creator/BlueSkyStudios actually deserves credit for '''inverting''' this trope. They were specifically aiming for G's, not only on ''Rio'' and [[WesternAnimation/Rio2 its sequel]], but also on ''WesternAnimation/HortonHearsAWho'' and ''WesternAnimation/ThePeanutsMovie''. Except for ''Rio'' at first, as well as ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'', they've been successful at earning G ratings without their box office performances being threatened.
** In the case of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rio}}'', early promotional material said it was rated PG. Fox responded by pushing the film's release back a week (with only three months to release, no less) and edited it down to G by reanimating a pivotal scene. Despite this though iTunes (to this day no less) mistakenly rates the film PG.

* Averted with ''WesternAnimation/TheLastUnicorn''. Anyone watching the film these days is ''shocked'' to find the film has a G rating.

* While ''WesternAnimation/PoetAndersonTheDreamWalker'' wasn't rated, it's hard to imagine the solitary PrecisionFStrike dropped by the main character being put in for any reason but the attitudes behind this trope. Besides one part with the main character's girlfriend in her skivvies, there's not a lot in the way of objectionable content.
* ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirlsMovie'' was originally going to get a G rating, but Creator/CraigMcCracken wanted it to be PG-13. He and the studio compromised on a PG.
* Allegedly ''WesternAnimation/TitanAE'' was originally given a G rating so the producers, not wanting to offend their target demographic, older kids and teens, added a brief shower scene to bump it up to PG. [[BoxOfficeBomb Not that it helped]].
* Inverted in the case of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rio}}''. Early promotional material said it was rated PG. Fox responded by pushing the film's release back a week (with only three months to release, no less) and edited it down to G by reanimating a pivotal scene. Despite this though iTunes (to this day no less) mistakenly rates the film PG.
** Creator/BlueSkyStudios actually deserves credit for '''inverting''' this trope. They were specifically aiming for G's, not only on ''Rio'' and [[WesternAnimation/Rio2 its sequel]], but also on ''WesternAnimation/HortonHearsAWho'' and ''WesternAnimation/ThePeanutsMovie''. Except for ''Rio'' at first, as well as ''WesternAnimation/Epic2013'', they've been successful at earning G ratings without their box office performances being threatened.
** Played straight(er) with their CashCowFranchise ''WesternAnimation/IceAge''. The first film was a comedy with lighthearted moments, but some dark and intense ones to balance it out. Many of the scary moments in the film would justify the PG rating it got. The [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeTheMeltdown second film]] ''was'' initially rated G, but was appealed and got a PG for mild language and ''innuendo'', a rather unusual move for a kids' movie. By the time the [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeDawnOfTheDinosaurs next]] [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeContinentalDrift three]] [[WesternAnimation/IceAgeCollisionCourse films]] came out, PG became the default and all the other films were rated as such.
* Despite some nudity, drug use, mild profanity and frightening images, and the fact that it is decidedly ''not'' a kids' movie, ''WesternAnimation/RockAndRule'' managed to only get a [=PG=] rating when it was first released. This can be attributed to the PG-13 rating not existing at the time (it was first introduced in the following year).
* In an inversion of this trope, ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooOnZombieIsland'' had to have about five minutes trimmed off in its UK release to avoid a 12.
* Creator/DonBluth wanted ''WesternAnimation/TheSecretOfNIMH'' to have a PG rating to appeal to a larger audience (and the fact that it has more frightening scenes than most of the Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon combined). Defying all logic (and one "damn"), the MPAA gave them a G. Then again though, [[AnimationAgeGhetto there's another reason it was rated 'G'...]]
** Bluth later inverted this trope for ''WesternAnimation/RockADoodle''. The part where Goldie poured wine down Chanticleer's throat would have given the film a PG rating, so that was changed to soda to ensure it got a G. Bluth also had to tone down some of the Grand Duke's misdeeds such as removing the scene where he [[WouldHurtAChild cooks a baby skunk into a pie]].
* Creator/{{Paramount}} originally wanted ''WesternAnimation/SouthParkBiggerLongerAndUncut'' to be rated PG-13, but Creator/TreyParkerAndMattStone said they wouldn't make it unless it was rated R. In an inversion of this trope, Terrance and Phillip were originally going to sing "Mother Fucker", which got the film an NC-17 rating. To make it rated R, the song was changed to "Uncle Fucker". Trey and Matt said the change made the song funnier. Matt and Trey also said that the ping-pong ball scene was edited too in order to avoid the NC-17 rating. Originally, Creator/WinonaRyder actually ''was'' shooting ping-pong balls out of her vagina instead of just looking like it.
** Inverted again with ''Film/TeamAmericaWorldPolice''. The original cut received an NC-17 rating but a scene depicting graphic puppet sex was cut down to ensure an R.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobSquarePantsMovie'' has one use of "damning" (not in a profane context, but the intent is obvious), one apparent use of "jackass", one use of "freaking", and jokes such as [=SpongeBob=] and Patrick getting [[DrunkOnMilk drunk on ice cream]] in order to give the film a PG rating.
** ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobMovieSpongeOutOfWater'': No profanity this time, but some "mild rude humor" such as a scene with a woman in a bikini laying on the beach, [=SpongeBob=] accidentally mooning Patrick, a censored curse word, and some trippy, drug-induced sequences (including a direct [[Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey 2001]] reference) seem to have been added for the PG rating.
** ''WesternAnimation/TheSpongeBobMovieSpongeOnTheRun'': "Crappy" is said twice and Squidward describes [=SpongeBob=] as being "freakin' annoying" to give the film a PG rating, with a content descriptor of "mild language" for the first time in the film franchise of the show, all with no dolphin chirps to censor it out (Although, in all fairness, in the US, "crap" and "freaking" are less profane than in the UK, some even going as far to treat them as playground insults, due to ValuesDissonance).
* The infamous line "Oh shit, what are we gonna do now?" from the 1986 ''WesternAnimation/TheTransformersTheMovie'' was there to give it a PG rating (and "Open, damn it, open!" may have served that purpose too). This was reportedly in order to force parents to accompany their children to the theater, [[MerchandiseDriven so they would know which toys to buy]]. Like ''Franchise/StarWars'', this didn't work in the UK, where it got a U rating (though the line is missing from some DVD versions).
** The Family Home Entertainment video release of 1986's ''The Transformers: The Movie'' included Ultra Magnus's "Open, dammit, open!", but lacked Spike's "Oh shit".
** Oddly enough, despite the film including profanity to bump up the ratings, one of the songs in the soundtrack, NRG's "Instruments of Destruction," had some of the lines rerecorded to edit out comparatively mild words - "iron birds of foreplay" was changed to "iron birds of fortune," "violent seduction" to "violent eruption," and most bafflingly "iron tools of torture" to "iron tools of torment." Granted, the first two (particularly the first) could be argued to have been cut because they were of a sexual nature, but torture to torment is just... weird. The band later rerecorded the song again with all the lyrics replaced with a loop of Spike's infamous line, as a protest to the changes they were forced to make.

* The association between Disney and the "G" rating led Jeffrey Katzenberg to deliberately invoke this for the Creator/DreamworksAnimation films, either by [[WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}} including a bunch of dirty jokes]] or [[WesternAnimation/{{Madagascar}} having a lion]] [[GroinAttack getting a low blow]] [[CurseCutShort and a zebra nearly uttering a]] [[PrecisionFStrike Precision MF-Strike]], or [[WesternAnimation/SharkTale featuring a shark]] being KilledOffForReal.
* A weird aversion happened with two movies based on adult animation in Quebec: there, both ''WesternAnimation/BeavisAndButtHeadDoAmerica'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsonsMovie'' carry a G rating, despite the source material not being for kids.
* Creator/{{Pixar}} originally averted this trope, but began to play it straight by [[TurnOfTheMillennium the late 2000s]], beginning with ''WesternAnimation/{{Up}}'' for their original films and ''WesternAnimation/FindingDory'' for sequels of G-rated films. Forbes [[http://www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson/2016/05/11/finding-dory-and-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-get-surprising-ratings/ discussed]] the latter's case. Before this, the only PG-rated Pixar film was ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'', which featured heavy violence and adult themes to justify it. However, in 2011, ''WesternAnimation/Cars2'' got the G rating, despite having intense violence on par with ''The Incredibles''. In 2017, ''WesternAnimation/Cars3'' was also rated G, despite having slightly more mature content than [[WesternAnimation/{{Cars}} the first film]]. In 2019, ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory4'' also received a G rating, though it was a bit LighterAndSofter than [[WesternAnimation/ToyStory3 the previous film]], which was also rated G in early 2010, just before the MPAA changed its rules.
** ''WesternAnimation/InsideOut'' was originally going to be given a G, but the producers decided to add several little things to bump it up, most notably a joke involving TheBear and a scene with a SoundEffectBleep.
** Like its predecessor, ''WesternAnimation/Incredibles2'' earns its PG rating by portraying more mature content including the drinking of alcohol by primary characters, considerable action-related violence, and dialogue. Evelyn Deavor utters "hell", "crap" and "I'll be damned". Violet says "Boys are jerks and superheroes suck." There are also at least three utterances of "Oh my God!" A CurseCutShort with Frozone's "What the?!" and Bob says "I eat thunder and crap lightning!".

* Inverted with ''WesternAnimation/SausageParty''. The movie came close to receiving an NC-17 rating, mainly because of [[spoiler:a piece of Lavash's pubic hair being visible at the end of the [[SexMontage food orgy]]]]. But after [[spoiler:his scrotum was digitally shaved]], it was reassigned with an R, [[CensorDecoy which is what the filmmakers were aiming for in the first place]]. This, of course, is saying a lot considering [[BlackComedy what]] ''[[BlackComedy did]]'' [[BlackComedy make it into the final film unaltered]].

* Inverted with ''WesternAnimation/TheLandBeforeTime''. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg wanted, and got, a G rating because of their concerns with certain scenes being too intense for young children. About 11 minutes of completed footage, mainly from the Tyrannosaurus Rex attack scene, were cut from the final release.