In what seems like an absolutely topsy-turvy series of events, it turns out Australia is getting a censored version of Lady Bird that’s missing a few c-bombs and some nudity.
Although this country embraces the word ‘cunt’ with a heady enthusiasm that baffles and terrifies the average American, it appears Universal has ditched the saltier language in a bid to get the movie’s rating bumped down from an MA15+ to a regular M.
According to a Facebook post by Media Censorship in Australia, one instance of the word was removed altogether, with another being overdubbed with the word ‘cooze’. The edit also includes the removal of a scene featuring an issue of Playgirl, which included nudity that had “explicit genital detail”.
Speaking to Filmink, the Australian Classifications Board stressed that they don’t censor the movies themselves, they just rate them:
The Classification Board does not ‘cut’ or modify films. The production company or distributor of a film may decide to make a modification to a film and re-submit it for classification in order to obtain a particular rating and consumer advice.
Lady Bird is the directorial debut of Greta Gerwig (who you might know from the incredible Frances Ha and 20th Century Women, both of which you should watch immediately if you haven’t seen them) and by all accounts sounds like it’s going to be incredibly dope.
