Fair Play parents guide: Is there any nudity or triggering content in the movie?

Netflix’s latest buzz-worthy movie is Fair Play, a dramatic thriller starring Bridgerton actress Phoebe Dynevor and Oppenheimer‘s Alden Ehrenreich. The film marks the feature directorial debut of writer Chloe Domont in a script that has been highly praised by critics. After making its premiere at the 2023 Sundance Festival, Netflix acquired the distribution rights to Fair Play for $20 million dollars and now the movie has finally premiered!

If you clicked this article, you might be curious if there is any triggering content in the film like sexual violence or explicit nudity, or maybe you’re a parent wondering if you can watch it while your kids are preoccupied. First and foremost, Fair Play is rated R and is definitely an adult film. It’s not a suitable choice for family movie night or for young viewers. But keep reading to find out more of the specifics to be aware of!

Keep in mind that there will be some mild Fair Play spoilers by the nature of this being a parents guide. I’ve watched the movie, so I’ll be giving you the detailed insight into what you need to know. That said, I’ll refrain from using character names or dropping significant spoilers so as not to ruin the overall experience.

Is there nudity and/or sex scenes in Fair Play?

Fair Play has been billed as an “erotic thriller” by some, but it’s really not. The most “explicit” thing about it is one scene toward the end and the language. There are plenty of curse words hurled around in this film—including f**k and b*tch—plus some dirty talking during the intimate scenes.

But in terms of actual sex scenes and nudity, it’s not as much as you might expect based on the trailers and poster. For nudity, all you see is a few glimpses of a woman’s breasts within the first 20 minutes of the film. In each instance, it’s literally for a split second and both times her chest is partially obscured by a towel or blanket.

One of the more shocking moments also happens in the first few minutes of the movie when a couple starts fooling around in a bathroom during a party. He starts performing oral sex on her (it’s not graphic) and they realize she started her period, you see blood on his lips and her dress.

Besides that, there is a brief scene that takes place at a strip club around the 1 hour 5 minute mark. The women at the club are scantily clad in thongs, mesh tops, and bras, but again, it’s not overly explicit and relatively tame compared to strip club scenes that have shown up in other films and television shows. The most explicit thing about the strip club interlude is actually the conversation amid the characters, in which ones tells a disturbing anecdote about a fraternity initiation gone wrong.

There is another almost-sex scene just before the 1 hour mark where two characters try to have sex but are unable to do so, there isn’t any nudity, but there is some dirty talking.

Violence

The final 20 minutes or so of the movie are probably the most graphic and intense, there is a violent rape scene during the climax, though there is no nudity shown in the scene, it could certainly be triggering to some. You’ll know it’s coming when two characters get into an argument that continues into a bathroom.

In the last scene, one character slashes another a couple of times with a kitchen knife, though the bloodshed is minimal. Besides the above, Fair Play also features smoking, drinking, and several super intense verbal arguments/altercations that might be disturbing to some viewers. Several characters also get very drunk and visibly intoxicated throughout the film.