5 Classic Movies That Can Trigger Conversations About Sexual Assault and Consent

One of the joys of parenthood is sharing your favorite childhood movies with your kids. So when it was my turn to choose a movie for family movie night recently, I was excited to show my tweens the original Ghostbusters. But pretty early in the film, Bill Murray’s character starts acting super sleazy with one of his young, female students. I had completely forgotten about this scene — and the more I thought about all the ’80s movies I loved as a teenager, the soon I realized this wasn’t even the worst of it.

Looking back, it’s pretty incredible how many kid- and teen-targeted movies included scenes of sexual harassment, assault, or even rape — mostly for laughs. Watching now, these scenes feel completely outdated and inappropriate. As our culture comes to terms with these issues— from better sexual harassment training in the workplace to the #MeToo movement — the content in popular movies has largely shifted with the times. But if you’re planning to dip back into the nostalgia zone with your kids, be prepared to discuss these issues when they come up. You don’t have to skip these films entirely — in fact, they can be great examples of how ideas change over time — but you might want to be prepared with some talking points.

Here are five movies that are entertaining classics but that include very problematic scenes or storylines. Read to the bottom for tips on how to talk to kids about consent, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and rape.