5 days Ago
TV shows about murder and rape are “giving people ideas”, film director Ridley Scott has said. Speaking after the release of Gladiator II , which stars Kildare actor Paul Mescal in the lead role, Scott called for more “clean stories” and an end to the spate of dark shows about rape and murder. Scott (86) said that entertainment was naturally “a little twisted”, but that too often it was being “abused”.
A 2016 US study of 17 popular TV shows found 70pc of episodes included violence, accounting for 2.3 seconds of every minute aired. Asked whether society had really moved on from the days of people watching gladiators fight to the death, he told the Sunday Times : “Well, the problem is we feed off it.
We are the inventors of our own demise. “Entertainment is, to a degree, a little twisted. “Not all of it− some has a good voice.
But frequently the voice is abused. And what’s the matter with good, clean stories? If there’s one more TV show about a girl found in the woods who has been raped and dead for 25 years? Stop. It gives people ideas.
” Hi comments come after a series of “trigger warnings” were put on British TV shows by broadcasters, including warning viewers of Midsomer Murders that episodes may contain violence. Such warnings were introduced by ITV on to its streaming service, ITVX, which is currently showing the first 22 series. Former stars of the show ridiculed the move, with the series featuring 388 murders, 423 deaths and 250 attempted murders across more than 140 episodes.
The 1980s sitcom Terry and June , BBC drama Call the Midwife , and even Shakespeare plays are among other viewings to be given content warnings. Theatregoers have been warned about potentially distressing content in Shakespeare plays, prompting criticism from leading actors such as Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes and Ian McKellen. Scott said he held back on the brutality on show in Gladiator II , the sequel to Oscar-winning 2000 film starring Russell Crowe, in order to appeal to the masses.
“What people forget is that gladiator combat is not football,” he said. “But they had a Christian family, standing in an arena while a big cat eats the children alive while their mother watches. And those f**kers did it for fun.
“You can’t go there with a popular film. Where does the fun stop and brutality begin? If I went further into brutality, people would shut down. “I’ve already lost a lot of blood from this.
I could go further, but I draw the line. And that’s why the film will probably be big.”.
