Is Tomorrowland Too Scary for Kids?

We have been pretty excited to see Tomorrowland, starring George Clooney and Britt Robertson, which opens in theaters today. Created by Disney and rated PG, this may look like a perfect film for a family movie night, but before you head out to the theater with your crew, here’s what you should know.

We first saw a trailer for Tomorrowland when we took our family to see Disney’s new Cinderella movie in March. In that glimpse, Tomorrowland looked like a fun, family movie; however, we recently saw a few more intense trailers (particularly the one below) that left us wondering for what ages the movie is appropriate. Happily we were invited to an early screening of the show, and we paid careful attention to figure out which of our kids we should take to see it.

The trailer above contains most of the more graphic elements in the film, but it’s important to note that level of intensity runs throughout the movie. Tomorrowland deals with some heavy topics and has an on-the-edge-of-my-seat feel, which means this movie is not for youngsters.

Another key thing to be aware of is the global apocalyptic issues that play a significant role in the story. We think these topics and imagery could be disturbing, especially if a child is left to dwell on his or her own. Our plan is to discuss these ideas afterwards with our kids and help them understand the pieces of fact and fiction in the story. That being said we really love how the movie deals with these issues, and the key message of Tomorrowland is truly inspiring — believing in the good can change everything.

Speaking of good, our favorite character in the film is Athena, and this trailer gives you a glimpse at her.

While we’re sure Disney intended this to be a family film, it’s definitely better suited for a family with an older age set. Don’t get us wrong — we really loved this fun, futuristic movie, but since it would be either uninteresting or too scary for our younger kiddos, we will be taking just our oldest ones to see it. If we HAD to put an age limit on this movie we would recommend for kids 8-9+.

We also wanted to share this free printable pack of fun, Tomorrowland-themed activities. The free download includes more then 10 activities including coloring pages, mazes and even a tutorial on how to do jet pack balloon races. There is also a full-color fortune teller that you can use to predict your future, and a memory game featuring characters from the film.

In this case we were able to attend a pre-screening of Tomorrowland, but I just wanted to mention Parent Previews movie reviews, which is our go-to source for detailed movie info from a parent’s perspective.

Due to the large file sizes we had to split the pack into two downloads.

:: Part 1 Tomorrowland Free Family Activity Pack
:: Part 2 Tomorrowland Free Family Activity Pack