Disney Boss Bob Chapek Teases More Rated R Content Could Hit Disney+

Disney has long prided itself on providing experiences and content for the entire family. In recent years, that's begun to change as the Mouse started an aggressive acquisition campaign under the guidance of Bob Iger. With its majority ownership in Hulu, Disney has financed content like Pam & Tommy and The Kardashians, programs developed strictly for adults. While Iger continued to place an emphasis on family-friendly fare during his tenure at the Mouse, content objectives are starting to shift under the watch of his successor Bob Chapek.

In a new piece with the Wall Street Journal, Chapek admitted he was open to the idea and creating mature content for Disney+ if it's something audiences want from the service. "I want to respect what this brand is. But at the same time, I know that we may be even more precious about what is 'Disney' than the consumer base is," Chapek told the Journal. "If the consumer base has more elasticity, we probably ought to listen to our audience, which means we have more degrees of freedom than we probably thought."

Is there R-rated content on Disney+?

Disney+ launched strictly with family-friendly films and television shows, the platform has since added R-rated and TV-MA programming. In the case of the DefendersVerse, brutal, violence-heavy shows like The Punisher and Jessica Jones are now available to stream on the service as are both Deadpool movies and Logan.

While the vast majority of the Disney+ remains PG-13 or lighter, parents groups are already railing such additions, chastising the platform's leadership with breaking their initial promises.

Will there ever be R-rated MCU movies?

To date, the only movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to be confirmed to carry an R rating is Deadpool 3, which is currently in the writing stage. With its release dated for late November 2024, it's likely that movie will be the first film released by Marvel Studios to carry the adult rating.

On the Disney+ side of the equation, it was revealed Marvel Zombies will be rated TV-MA. While animated, the series will still likely be the first adult-oriented programming—film or otherwise—produced and released by Marvel Studios. Zombies is also set for release in 2024.