My Grandfather Charles Manson

What’s it about?

After her father learns he is the son of the murder cult leader Charles Manson, Sophia Maddox goes on a quest to find out what it means to be related to an infamous criminal.

The facts 

• Directed by Sophia Maddox and Alexandra Orton
• English language 
• Runtime: 106 minutes

Why did it get this rating? 

This documentary was self-rated by Disney+. You can find out more about self-rating by streaming providers here.

Sexual violence themes

There is some hard-hitting sexual violence discussed in this documentary, mostly against young people. We are not shown anything, but the discussions are detailed.

We learn about bullying and sexual assault suffered and done by Charles Manson when he was a child and teenager at a boys’ home.

An older women talks about how Manson raped her when she was a teenager.

Maddox’s father talks of being sexually abused by an adult at military school when he was eight years old.

Content that may disturb

Charles Manson and his followers, the Family, are known for their involvement in high-profile, brutal murders. These are discussed a number of times in the film, and crime scene photos are shown. None of the footage shows dead bodies, but we see blood splatter (in black and white) and are talked through what happened to the victims in photos of the rooms, as the rooms are shown.

Manson’s followers were mostly young women, including teenage girls as young as 14. We hear stories of how they joined his group and see video footage of behaviour such as them crawling on the street with shaved heads, and a number of them with X’s – sometimes bloody or scarred – carved into their foreheads. Many of the people Maddox interviews call the group a cult, while others deny this.

There is detailed description of historic brutality that occurred in a boys’ home, including underreported physical violence at the hands of guardians, and images of leather straps.

We witness verbal and emotional abuse from Maddox’s father, alongside references to historical abuse from his childhood, and see her process these experiences in therapy.

Themes of childhood abuse, neglect, mental illness, and intergenerational trauma are explored throughout. Maddox's efforts to understand her family history and heal from its effects may be emotionally challenging for some viewers.

There is discussion of “race wars”, with some claiming Manson wanted to deliberately start a war between the “Blacks and the whites”. There is footage of guns during this discussion.

Drug references

Followers of Manson talk about how they took a lot of drugs including marijuana and LSD, among others. One of his famous followers, Charles “Tex” Watson, was known as a former drug dealer.

Offensive language

There is frequent use of offensive language including “f*ck” and “sh*t”.

Helplines

The sexual violence, emotional abuse, and mental illness content in this documentary could be upsetting for some viewers, especially for those who have gone through similar experiences. If you are struggling with what you have seen on-screen, please reach out for help. If you or someone you know needs to talk:

• 1737
• Safe to talk
• Lifeline
• Youthline

Further information 

• Why are ratings and content warnings important for me and my whānau?