YouTube is back in the headlines again after the online video platform removed the updated trailer for the horror movie “The Nun,” deeming the content to be “too scary” for their sensitive viewers. Admittedly what I have seen of the trailer is pretty scary, but is YouTube going too far by removing the video?
According to YouTube, the footage violates their “shocking content policy,” due to the sudden and terrifying scene right at the end. YouTube released a statement to point out that they do value diversity and have respect for others and their work, but that they strive to avoid shocking or offending users of their online video platform with footage, websites, ads or apps that they feel are inappropriate for their ad-viewing audience.
Ads, of course, are naturally king for YouTube and Google generally.
‘The Nun’ scary trailer
As noted by The Mirror, while they may have deleted the original, YouTube being YouTube, some copies still remain. One six-second trailer displays a volume sign, which goes down to mute, just before the scary Nun herself appears to terrify viewers. Whether the video below is the entire trailer is unknown, but viewers are warned that it is still rather scary.
A previous trailer showed more detail of the Film, ending with a young nun being attacked by the titular nun. While scary, it certainly isn’t terrifying.
YouTube’s policy is intended to protect viewers from any violent or shocking content. This policy includes any promotions (or trailers) that are likely to scare or shock the viewing public, which is YouTube’s main reasoning for removing the trailer for the film.
Spin-off from ‘The Conjuring’
As reported by NME, the latest scary film “The Nun” comes as a second spin-off to the horror film “The Conjuring after Annabel: The Creation.” The scary film follows the story of a young nun who joins a cloistered Romanian abbey and ends up taking her own life. It also features a priest who has a haunted past, as well as a novitiate who is about to take her final vows and is sent to the abbey by the Vatican to investigate the situation there.
The priest and the novitiate together discover the unholy secret of the abbey’s order. Together they risk their lives, faith and their souls as they confront the malevolent force in the abbey. That force is the scary and demonic nun who first appeared in “The Conjuring 2.” The film "The Nun" is set to be released to shock and terrify cinemas viewers in the UK on 7 September.
