I Want You Back: parents' guide
Best for ages 16 and up. Rated R for language, sexual material, some drug use and partial nudity.
A raunchy romantic comedy for older teens and adults rather than a family movie night. Two thirtysomethings who were just dumped team up to sabotage their exes' new relationships and slowly fall for each other. It is sweet at heart, but the R is earned: more than a dozen f-words (some from a 12-year-old), implied sex scenes, a threesome that falls apart mid-undress, a man's bare backside, heavy drinking, and two grown men taking ecstasy at a party with girls who turn out to be in high school. Violence is nearly absent. Best for about 16 and up.
What's in it
Violence
MildVery little. One man punches another in the face, a man drops a loaded barbell on his chest for laughs, and a middle school musical splashes obviously fake stage blood.
Language
StrongFrequent: Plugged In counted more than 15 f-words and about a dozen s-words, plus 'ass,' 'dick' and many uses of 'oh my God.' A 12-year-old student swears and talks crudely about sex to an adult.
Sex and nudity
ModerateCouples in bed with sex implied, loud sex heard through a wall, and a threesome setup in which three people strip to underwear before it is broken up. A naked man's bare butt is shown, with frontal nudity implied offscreen. Lots of sexual talk.
Drinking, drugs and smoking
StrongAdults drink often and sometimes get very drunk. Two grown men drink and take ecstasy at a party with girls they later learn are high schoolers. The two leads smoke cigarettes and cough; a kid is stopped from lighting one.
Scary or intense scenes
NoneNothing scary. The only stakes are breakups, jealousy and loneliness, all played for comedy, with no peril or menace.
Worth talking about
Peter and Emma try to win back their exes by manipulating them. Ask your teen why schemes like this tend to backfire, and what healthier ways there are to handle being dumped.
On our lists
Similar picks around 16+
Checked October 13th, 2026 against Common Sense Media, Plugged In, the MPA, classificationoffice.govt.nz, moviemom.com. 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.