Research: Animated movies becoming more mature
October 20, 2026



Research from the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) finds that animated films are becoming more mature. One in three released in 2026 for UK cinemas is now classified 12A or above, up from one in seven at the start of the millennium (2001).

The findings come ahead of Wildwood, a fantasy stop-motion animated film, being released in cinemas on October 23rd, rated 12A.


The release of animated features in UK cinemas has risen steadily over the last 25 years. The BBFC classified just 15 animated features in 2000. A quarter of a century later, it classified more than six times as many, with 95 in 2025.

So far in 2026, the BBFC has classified 64 animated features for cinema release, putting the year on course for another strong total. Across the full period from 2000 to 2026, the BBFC has classified 1,329 animated films for cinema.

Animated films have historically been aimed most commonly at young audiences, but the data shows this is changing, with a growing number now pitched at more mature audiences.

Between 2000 and 2002, two in three (67 per cent) animated features classified for cinema release were rated U. In 2025 and so far in 2026, that figure has fallen to around one in five (22 per cent).

Over the same period, there has been a sharp rise in the number of animated features rated 15 for cinema. 2025 set a record, with 22 animated features rated 15, nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of all animated films released in UK cinemas that year. That is more than in the whole of the 2000s combined, when just 14 films (7 per cent) were rated 15, and means the proportion of animated films rated 15 has more than tripled, from 7 per cent to 23 per cent.

This shift towards animated films for more mature audiences is recent. For two decades, from 2000 to 2020, around one in seven animated features (15 per cent) was rated 12 / 12A or above. Since 2021, the figure has increased to more than one in three (35 per cent).

In 2025, for example, the animated fantasy action film Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba Infinity Castle was rated 15 for strong violence, bloody images and language. The Most Precious of Cargoes, an animated historical drama set during the Holocaust, was rated 12A for Holocaust images, disturbing scenes, discrimination and violence.

The growing popularity of anime has been an important factor in this trend. In 2025, nearly 40 per cent of all animated features classified for cinema release were anime titles.

David Austin OBE, Chief Executive of the BBFC, commented: “For years, animated feature films have been most commonly aimed at a younger audience. But our research shows we are now seeing a far wider range of animated films than ever before, with many of them made for teenage and adult audiences. That is why our trusted age ratings and content advice matters more than ever. Parents should not assume an animated film is always suitable for young children, and we would encourage families to check the rating and content advice to ensure whatever they watch is right for them and their family.”