It’s safe to say that Peppa Pig has become a bit of a phenomenon amongst kids in years (probably to the chagrin of some parents). But according to a new report from BBC News, some young fans of the franchise were met with a surprise that’s definitely not for kids.
Videos by ComicBook.com
An audience for Peppa Pig: Festival of Fun was accidentally shown multiple horror movie trailers, during a recent screening at the Empire Cinema in Ipswich, England. The screening was reportedly pre-empted by trailers for the Octavia Spencer-led Ma, as well as the superhero horror film Brightburn. According to the article, children were “left in tears” following the trailers, with some parents removing their children from the theater.
As horror fans surely know, both of the films in question have not pulled the punches with their trailers. The first trailer for Ma showcases some pretty grisly murders, as well as sexual violence and a character being hit by a car. Brightburn, which is setting out to be a dark take on the Superman myth, also features a fair share of blood and violence in its trailers, as well as images of a child in a creepy mask.
Charlie Jones, who took her two children to the screening, revealed that these two trailers seem to have clearly upset her two-year-old daughter, Annie.
“Normally I would expect Annie to be singing and dancing when watching something like [Peppa Pig] but she was just really subdued.” Jones explained in the interview. “I tried to cover her eyes during the trailers and told her they were silly films for mummies and daddies, but there were lots of kids crying and she was very confused and started crying too.”
“I went mad at [the manager].” Jones continued. “It was meant to be a special day for Annie. I don’t think he understands the impact of it… Annie is very imaginative and scared of monsters and things like that at the moment… You go to the cinema and you expect it to be a safe family day out, you don’t expect her to be exposed to anything which could do harm.”
This isn’t the first time that Peppa Pig has been tied to creepy messaging, with Youtube videos of the series being rumored to include the controversial “Momo” suicide game earlier this year. And this trend of R-rated trailers playing before family-friendly fare has certainly happened before, from Sausage Party and Finding Dory to Hereditary and Peter Rabbit.
Empire Cinemas has since addressed the controversy, “sincerely” apologizing for the incident and promising to investigate how it happened.
“As soon as the staff on site were made aware of the situation, the programme was stopped and trailers were taken off-screen immediately.” a spokeswoman for the company said in a statement. “We do sincerely apologize for this and for any distress caused and will be reviewing our internal procedures to ascertain how this came to be.”
Brightburn will arrive in theaters on May 24th, while Ma will debut on May 31st.
