History WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids / LiveActionTV

* This led to the sad story of ''Series/{{Angel}}'''s botched terrestrial broadcast in the UK. Creator/Channel4 bought ''Series/{{Angel}}'' and decided to broadcast the first season at six in the evening, because, you know, anything with magic in it is obviously teatime fare for kids. Despite extremely heavy censorship cuts, this still led to a formal reprimand from the [[CensorshipBureau Broadcasting Standards Council]]. The last few episodes of the first season and the whole second season were consequently shown after midnight with little or no publicity. The third season was bought instead by Creator/ChannelFive, who treated it equally badly. (The other two seasons have never aired on any UK terrestrial channel.)

* ''Series/{{Wednesday}}'' is based on [[Series/TheAddamsFamily a family-friendly franchise]] and was nominated for (and won) a UsefulNotes/KidsChoiceAward. However, there are many elements that make it unsuitable for children, including several [[NightmareFuel scary scenes]], a plot revolving around a murder mystery, and some swearing.

* The newer seasons of ''Series/{{Degrassi}}'' get this too, despite the fact that the show is usually rated TV-14 and has characters dealing with a plethora of (mostly not child-friendly) challenges, such as eating disorders, peer pressure, sexual identity, gang violence, self-injury, teenage pregnancy, drug abuse, school shootings, rape, etc. The fact that it airs in the U.S. on Creator/TeenNick might have a part in this. (It should be noted that many parents likely recall watching the original series, which ''was'' more family-friendly.)

* ''Series/OnceUponATime'' is not ''that'' extreme of an example, but just because it's about fairy tales and has many characters that were in Disney movies does not mean that it's for the same age group (besides, the fairy tales and its characters didn't become all cutesy and G-rated ''until'' Disney adapted them). The series contains things like violence, bloodshed ([[BloodlessCarnage though often not as much as would be expected]]), a character who is unknowingly a werewolf [[ImAHumanitarian turning into a wolf and eating the man she's in love with]], implied rape as well as a definite (though never ''exactly'' stated) example of a SexSlave, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking mild language]]. The inclusion of ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen|2013}}'' characters in particular appearing was marketed quite a bit; however, the series isn't as G as the film itself (which has a PG rating but is very tame and popular with little kids). The fact that the series often uses Disney's adaptations of fairy tales as a base (Gaston's not even in the original ''Literature/BeautyAndTheBeast'', he was created for ''Film/BeautyAndTheBeast1946'') really does not help. That and the fact the series uses fairy tales currently untouched by Disney (''Literature/HanselAndGretel'') and some books that aren't considered fairy tales at all (''{{Literature/Frankenstein}}'') is a bit of a MindScrew.

* ''Series/{{Wednesday}}'' is based on [[Series/TheAddamsFamily a family-friendly franchise]] and was nominated for (and won) a UsefulNotes/KidsChoiceAward. However, there are many elements that make it unsuitable for children, including several [[NightmareFuel scary scenes]], a plot revolving around a murder mystery, as well as some swearing.

* Miniseries/film FracturedFairyTale ''Series/TheTenthKingdom''. It's fine for older kids, mostly thanks to ParentalBonus, but many a parent decided, like all {{Fairy Tale}}s, it was intended for kids. There are references to aforementioned glowing hot slippers, onscreen deaths and a main character standing trial for eating a girl, who was actually killed by her uncle. Also, Rutger Hauer with a crossbow. Let us not forget how the opening of the first episode showed us a shot of the Snow White Memorial Prison, with a bunch of buzzards eating the remains of prisoners in old hanging cages... yes, [[SarcasmMode very family friendly fairy-tale indeed]]...

* In the early 1970s Gerry and Sylvia Anderson decided to go into more serious, live-action drama with the series ''Series/{{UFO}}'', though it still used plenty of their famous model work. Unfortunately, the networks didn't know what to do with a show about faceless aliens coming to Earth to steal people's organs, which included one episode about drugged out hippies and another which focuses on the lead character having an extramarital affair. After all, it was made by the creators of ''Series/{{Thunderbirds}}'' so it must be for kids, right? Even when producer Gerry Anderson included very strong hints of the series being more adult-oriented than his usual fare - including a gratuitous MsFanservice scene in the first episode where a female character strips down to her underwear for no plot-related reason - broadcasters were still confused.

* Creator/AmericanForcesNetwork does this with their AFN Family subchannel. Since it's time-shared with AFN Pulse, sometimes programming that is mature in tone like ''Series/NineOneOne'' will air immediately following children's shows like ''WesternAnimation/TheLoudHouse''. As expected, this never lasts long, and the shows usually get moved to Spectrum or the main AFN channel after a few months.

* Another ABC show, ''Series/TheGoldbergs'', was advertised in cinemas before family-friendly movies such as ''WesternAnimation/{{Planes}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/{{Turbo}}'', and was also advertised in banner ads on The Hub's (now Creator/DiscoveryFamily) website. From the preview, it looks like a fun sitcom about a boy having crazy adventures in TheEighties with his family, and he likes a few things from that era kids still like today like ''Franchise/StarWars''. Except that there are adult themes in the show and uncensored and censored swearing, mostly from the father on the show, and sometimes even Adam swears! [[note]] Only the really bad words, like the F-word, are bleeped to keep it at a TV-PG level. For example, the second season's Halloween episode had a whole string of censored swearing before cutting to an ad break[[/note]], and episodes about about Barry being taught about sex and the kids finding a scrambled porn channel (that we don't get to see, of course) when they are trying to watch ''Series/GeneralHospital''.

* ''Series/WalkerTexasRanger'' was sometimes seen as a "family" show and was popular with younger kids even though the show dealt with adult themes more often than not.

* Creator/{{Freeform}}, formerly known as [[http://shinga.deviantart.com/art/Head-Trip-All-Greek-To-Me-61559835/ ABC Family]], is a rare example of this trope not necessarily applying to a series, but to an ''entire network''. It began as the CBN Family Channel - the CBN being "Christian Broadcasting Network", which was owned by televangelist Pat Robertson of ''Series/The700Club'' fame. When the network was sold, initially to Fox, and later to ABC/Disney, the "Family" name was actually written into various contracts with other cable companies. This led to ongoing conflicts with not only {{Moral Guardian|s}} types but parents, period, as ABC Family began airing shows aimed at older viewers, with sexual content and language and adult themes that seemed to contradict the "Family" name. If such a requirement ever existed, by the fall of 2015 it was no longer a concern when [[http://www.ew.com/article/2015/10/06/abc-family-changing-name-freeform the Freeform name change]] took effect in 2016.

* ''Series/DinosaurPlanet'' is a nice little show about dinosaurs, right? Nice, if you mean being buried alive by a sandstorm, brutal Protoceratops murdering, plenty of {{gorn}}, [[GiantWallOfWateryDoom a megatsunami that kills everyone in the area but one]], a Maiasaura with an injured leg slowly dying of his wounds, [[KillEmAll everyone in that episode dying of a horrific volcanic explosion]], a Saltasaurus nesting site being drowned, and an Aucasaurus crushed to death.

* The 2015 series ''Series/TheMuppets'' is TV-PG and it shows. There are ''a lot'' of adult jokes showing off that just because it's a ''Muppet'' series doesn't mean it's for kids. In Russia, the show aired on Disney Channel, right after the Disney Junior block, and Amazon lists the show as a recommendation alongside some DirectToVideo ''Series/SesameStreet'' specials and ''The Mother Goose Club''. Eventually, this trope was its downfall, as it was canceled due to low ratings. People just couldn't get into an adult-aimed ''Muppets'' show after years of it being child-friendly.

* There are child fans of ''Series/StrangerThings'' because it A) has young children as protagonists and B) came out around the same time [[Anime/YokaiWatch an anime with a similar premise]] began picking up steam in the U.S. and Canada. This leaves out all the scary monsters, AdultFear and MindRape scenes that the former series is well-known for. In the fall of 2017, as fans awaited the eventual arrival of the third season of ''Stranger Things'', US and UK media began reporting on Netflix airing a thematically similar series called ''Dark'', imported from Europe, with many recommending it to fans of ''Stranger Things''. This led to some awkward moments for viewers expecting something semi-family friendly only to be confronted with a series with explicit sex scenes and heavier violence.

*** It wasn't for nothing that Creator/RusselTDavies set a firm rule for The Doctor appearing on his two spinoffs: The Doctor could (and did) appear freely on ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'', but he explicitly forbade The Doctor ever appearing on ''Torchwood'' deliberately to avert this trope and to send the message that the show was not to be watched by kids. Of course, in a couple of occasions, crossovers in the other direction did happen.

* Some teachers have shown the ''Series/InsideAmySchumer'' segment where [[Series/BillNyeTheScienceGuy Bill Nye]] explains the universe to students as young as elementary schoolers, simply because the person it involves is well-known for his children's TV show. Not only is the segment actually about the relationship of the universe to women, but it also contains at least one instance of swearing.

* ''Series/{{Galavant}}'' is a parody of {{Fairy Tale}}s, has a lighthearted, colorful tone, and has its soundtrack done by the guy who did the music for ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' and ''WesternAnimation/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame'', so it must be for kids, right? Well, half the opening number was devoted to all the sex Galavant and Madalena were having during their relationship, and the series only gets raunchier from there.

* ''Series/SquidGame'' is about adults playing children's games to win money, so it seems like harmless entertainment for kids at first, right? Not exactly-the show is known for being extremely violent.

* ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'':
** ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD'', despite being in the same continuity the Marvel Cinematic Universe (which despite having some more adult moments, is generally family-friendly), has a much different tone. Murder, sex, Government corruption, and lots of NightmareFuel is a regular part of the show. Despite this, Agent Coulson, Fitz, and Simmons have all appeared in the ''WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan'' TV show, which is aimed at kids, while an ''Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'' DLC pack featuring the cast of the show was released for ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelsAvengers''. All that said, ''S.H.I.E.L.D.'' has always aired with a TV-14 rating and stayed within the parameters of what regular network TV requires. The same cannot be said for the MCU-based shows produced for streaming platforms such as Creator/{{Netflix}}, due to their ratings being either TV-14 or TV-MA.
** This is one of the major reasons why ''Series/JessicaJones2015'' was in DevelopmentHell for so long. Melissa Rosenberg wanted the series to be appropriately DarkerAndEdgier to reflect its [[Comicbook/{{Alias}} source material]], but none of the networks were interested in a superhero show that dealt with the gritty subject matter she was pitching. It eventually got picked up by Creator/{{Netflix}}, which is known for its more mature content. Its primary themes include such [[SarcasmMode cheery]] subjects as [[TheAlcoholic alcoholism]], PTSD and [[RapeAsDrama rape]], each of which are thoroughly explored and discussed to a disturbing degree. Like ''Series/{{Daredevil 2015}}'', it earned a TV-MA rating. There were eyebrows raised when the first episode of the series - which included violence and sex scenes - was shown at a New York Comic Con event attended by parents with children. To be fair, parents were given the option to leave with their kids before the screening began, but there were reports of some who didn't quite realize Marvel meant it when they said Jessica Jones was an adults-only series.
** Speaking of ''Series/{{Daredevil 2015}}'', to say that it earned its TV-MA rating would be a massive understatement. The level of violence in the series can be absolutely shocking at times, whether it be hearing Healy smash a guy's in with a bowling ball or seeing Wilson Fisk kill Anatoly by beating him unconscious and decapitating him with a car door. While on the topic, the ''VideoGame/LEGOMarvelsAvengers'' game is based on the [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]] and has levels based on the various movies and TV shows. Despite this, the ''Daredevil'' and ''Jessica Jones'' series were not included, as Marvel felt they were inappropriate for children, but they do appear as playable characters.

* ''Series/Titans2018'' may be part of a franchise that's commonly thought of a lighthearted due to multiple animated series, but kid-friendly it is ''not''. Just the first trailer alone features a dark and brooding atmosphere, people getting mangled, snapped, sliced, burned alive, and Robin himself drops the F-bomb. The fact that it's compared to the Creator/{{Netflix}} [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]] and was originally going on Creator/{{TNT}} should give you a good idea that it was never meant for kids to begin with. It's rated TV-MA for a reason.

** This is one of the major reasons why ''Series/JessicaJones2015'' was in DevelopmentHell for so long. Melissa Rosenberg wanted the series to be appropriately DarkerAndEdgier to reflect its [[Comicbook/{{Alias}} source material]], but none of the networks were interested in a superhero show that dealt with the gritty subject matter she was pitching. It eventually got picked up by Creator/{{Netflix}}, which is known for its more mature content. Its primary themes include such cheery subjects as [[TheAlcoholic alcoholism]], PTSD and [[RapeAsDrama rape]], each of which are thoroughly explored and discussed to a disturbing degree. Like ''Series/{{Daredevil 2015}}'', it earned a TV-MA rating. There were eyebrows raised when the first episode of the series - which included violence and sex scenes - was shown at a New York Comic Con event attended by parents with children. To be fair, parents were given the option to leave with their kids before the screening began, but there were reports of some who didn't quite realize Marvel meant it when they said Jessica Jones was an adults-only series.

* ''Series/OnceUponATime'' is not ''that'' extreme of an example, but just because it's about fairy tales and has many characters that were in Disney movies does not mean that it's for the same age group (besides, the fairy tales and its characters didn't become all cutesy and G-rated ''until'' Disney adapted them). The series contains things like violence, bloodshed ([[BloodlessCarnage though often not as much as would be expected]]), a character who is unknowingly a werewolf [[ImAHumanitarian turning into a wolf and eating the man she's in love with]], implied rape as well as a definite (though never ''exactly'' stated) example of a SexSlave, and [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking mild language]]. The inclusion of ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen|2013}}'' characters in particular appearing was marketed quite a bit however the series isn't as G as the film itself (which has a PG rating however is very tame and popular with little kids). The fact that the series often uses Disney's adaptations of fairy tales as a base (Gaston's not even in the original ''Literature/BeautyAndTheBeast'', he was created for ''Film/BeautyAndTheBeast1946'') really does not help. That and the fact the series uses fairy tales currently untouched by Disney (''Literature/HanselAndGretel'') and some books that aren't considered fairy tales at all (''{{Literature/Frankenstein}}'') is a bit of a MindScrew.

* ''Series/TwentyFour'' suffers the same "detectives and spies are okay for kids" stigma that series like ''James Bond'' and ''Austin Powers'' commonly get treated with (see [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotForKids.LiveActionFilms this page for more on that]]). Its' popularity with kids was made famous upon the publication of [[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1318646/First-man-moon-Buzz-Lightyear-say-1-5-schoolchildren.html a study showing that British school children knew more about pop culture than events in history]].

* ''Series/KamenRiderAmazons'' is definitely the [[BloodierAndGorier goriest]] entry in ''Franchise/KamenRider'' franchise that can even ''make [[Creator/GenUrobuchi Urobutcher's]] [[YourHeadAsplode head explodes]]''. Being made by the staff members from the early Heisei-era entries, this one is NotSafeForWork to the point that they released on [[Creator/AmazonStudios Amazon Prime]] where watchers of the recent Heisei-era entries are a no-no. (You might be okay if you grew up watching early-2000s Heisei-era entries.)

* Back when it was popular, 13% of ''[[Series/{{Rescue911}} Rescue 911]]'' viewers consisted of children, most of them younger than six, and the show got higher ratings than ''WesternAnimation/GarfieldAndFriends''. [[http://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/01/education/alarms-raised-over-rescue-911.html This caused an uproar with parents and child psychologists]] on whether the show was educational or too scary for children.

** ''Series/{{Happy}}'', a series that came out a year later that's similar to this one, also qualifies as this trope. Yes, it's about a man and a cute animated horse, but it contains violence, drug use, and cursing.

** ''Series/UltramanNexus'' was a ratings failure for the very same reasons. Intended to be a completely DarkerAndEdgier {{Deconstruction}} reimagining of the ''Franchise/UltraSeries'' and notorious as one of the darkest entries of the franchise, it got put on a Saturday morning kids' block due to MisaimedMarketing (Hey it's ''Ultraman'', of course kids'll love it!), which resulted in abysmal ratings and the only case ever of an early cancellation for the ''Ultra Series''.

* ''Puppets Who Kill'': The puppeteers have played characters on ''Series/TheNoddyShop'' and ''Groundling Marsh'' and it's about puppets getting help from a human for their problems, but those problems aren't your everyday ones.

* Despite being based on [[WesternAnimation/WinxClub a children's show]], ''Series/FateTheWinxSaga'' isn't for the same target audience as ''Winx Club'' was, as it's DarkerAndEdgier.