Why is Black Christmas rated PG-13 instead of R?

HO HO HOrror! You don't usually think of Christmas as a scary holiday (other than the whole stranger-coming-down-the-chimney bit), but the upcoming Black Christmas proves horrific events happen year-round.

At the Los Angeles junket, SYFY FANGRRLS had the chance to sit down with director Sophia Takal, writer April Wolfe, and stars Imogen Poots, Lily Donoghue, and Brittany O'Grady to talk about what makes this version of Black Christmas so special.

"I really wanted to make a movie where the violence towards women didn't feel exploitative or gratuitous, so from the start it was really important to me, like the original Black Christmas, to make a movie where the kills were more artful and more happened off-screen than on," explained Takal of the film's PG-13 rating.

Like the original film, the 2019 Black Christmas also explores issues important to current cultural conversations, like sexual assault and misogyny. "There's a real place for this film. It definitely contributes a lot to the conversation," said Poots. "I think it's such a real fear that women feel just to walk home at night," Donoghue added. "We all have experiences with what Riley has been through or know people who have been through what she has been through, and I think the only way to tell it is through women."

Watch the full video below to see what holiday horror stories the cast and crew of Black Christmas have had in their own lives and which holiday movies they'd love to see get a horror remake! 

Black Christmas creeps into theaters on Friday the 13th of December.