Five Nights at Freddy's: parents' guide
Best for ages 13 and up. Rated PG-13 for strong violent content, bloody images and language.
A creepy, jump-scare-heavy horror movie that works as a step up for teens, and a big draw for younger fans of the video games. A struggling security guard takes the night shift at an abandoned pizza restaurant where animatronic mascots come alive and kill intruders. The backstory centers on children who were abducted and murdered, including the guard's little brother, and the same ghosts try to lure his young sister. Most kills happen off screen or in shadow, but gory corpses and bloody wounds appear. Language is light. Age 13 reflects the steady terror and the child-murder theme more than the gore.
What's in it
Violence
ModerateMany deaths, mostly off screen or in silhouette: a woman bitten in half, a man's face forced into a bladed mask, a man impaled inside a mechanical suit. Corpses, bloody cuts, a choking and stabbing, and a savage beating also appear.
Language
ModerateLight for horror: Plugged In counted one s-word, one 'asshole,' one 'ass' and three uses of 'hell,' plus 'screw you,' 'go to hell' and insults like 'idiot' and 'jerk.' No f-words.
Sex and nudity
NoneNo romance, sexual content or nudity. The guard's friendship with a police officer stays platonic.
Drinking, drugs and smoking
ModerateThe guard takes prescription sleeping pills to return to dreams about his missing brother, and refills them after a friend throws them in a river. A child says her aunt smells like cigarettes. No drinking.
Scary or intense scenes
StrongSustained dread and frequent jump scares from the animatronics, nightmares in which ghost children wound the guard, a young girl drawn toward joining the dead kids, and flashbacks to a boy's abduction. The child-killer backstory is the most upsetting part.
Sensitive topics
- Death of a child
Worth talking about
Mike blames himself for his brother's disappearance and nearly loses his sister while chasing the past. Talk about guilt, and how holding on to grief can cost the people who are still here.
On our lists
Similar picks around 13+
Checked October 13th, 2026 against Common Sense Media, Plugged In, the MPA, movieguide.org. The age is our judgment, not an official rating, and every family draws its lines differently: read the notes, not just the number. Spotted something we missed? Tell us. How we rate.