Death of a Unicorn
NZ release: 10 April 2025
Horror, violence & animal cruelty Rated on: 12 March 2025
What’s it about?
A father and his daughter hit a unicorn on their way to visit his employer’s wealthy family. When the unicorn blood is revealed to have healing properties, the wealthy family attempt to exploit it.
The facts
- Directed by Alex Scharfman (Blow the Man Down)
- Stars Paul Rudd (This Is 40), Jenna Ortega (Scream VI), Will Poulter (Midsommer), and Téa Leoni (Fun with Dick and Jane)
- English language
- Runtime: 107 minutes
Why did it get this rating?
This film was classified by Te Mana Whakaatu, Classification Office. You can find out more about classification process and ratings here.
Horror
Monster-like unicorns with sharp teeth, guttural growls, and other monster-like features appear throughout the film. There are some jump scares.
Violence
There is bloody violence, some with visible wound or injury detail. Most of the violence involves fantasy animals. Some of the stronger violence includes:
- Several characters are impaled with unicorn horns through the torso. Gaping wounds in their torsos are shown.
- A unicorn uses its teeth to rip out the intestines of a character lying on a table.
- Two unicorns rip a character in two, spraying blood and body matter.
- A character is pierced through the skull by a unicorn horn, from the chin to the top of the head.
- A character holds another character hostage, threatening to shoot them with a bow and arrow.
Animal cruelty
There are depictions of animal cruelty against fictional unicorns.. Although the unicorn is computer-generated imagery, the cruelty is realistic.
- A character hits a unicorn in the head repeatedly with a tyre iron.
- Unicorns are shot in the head at close range.
- A character saws off a unicorn’s horn.
- A unicorn is sliced open with a scalpel.
Offensive language
Offensive language including “f**k”, “sh*t” and “bullsh*t” are used in frustration, confusion and casually.
Drug use
A character snorts and smokes a magical substance in a way that resembles drugs use.
When content stays with you:
We all have our boundaries, and it’s completely okay if something you’ve watched is weighing on your mind. If certain content lingers with you, consider having a chat with friends or whānau to debrief about what you’ve just seen. But if you’re still feeling affected, please reach out to any of the following helplines for support.
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