The Gentlemen parents guide: How violent is the Guy Ritchie series?

If you've watched any Guy Ritchie movies then you probably already know what you can expect from his Netflix series The Gentlemen, a spinoff from Ritchie's 2019 film of the same name. Like his previous works, such as King Arthur, Snatch, RocknRolla, etc., The Gentlemen is a mature show with a lot of violence and cursing.

Mild spoilers ahead for The Gentlemen on Netflix

The eight-episode Netflix show is rated TV-MA for violence, drugs, nudity, substances, and strong language. But as I've seen the whole thing, I can give you a more detailed breakdown of what to expect from the series. Parents interested in watching the show can get a better idea of whether it's suitable for their potentially interested teens to watch or if you have specific triggers, this guide should help you decide if this is the show for you.

Nudity and sexual content in The Gentlemen

There is no sexual content in The Gentlemen at all, not even so much as a kiss between characters. It's not a romantic series by any means, so you don't have to worry about sex scenes or anything if that's a concern.

That said, there is one scene that features full-frontal male nudity. It happens within the opening few minutes of the fourth episode when a naked man opens fire on a bunch of tourists and then runs outside where the camera pans out and shows him in all his glory. The scene is intended to be dark comedy and the actual nudity only lasts for a few seconds.

What to know about the show's violence and graphic content

By the far most graphic content included in The Gentlemen is the violence, but even that isn't too bad. The bloodiest scene happens in the third episode when a woman brutally murders another man with a machete. However, you don't see much besides her using the knife out of frame and then looking up with blood all over her face. In the first episode, a character gets his head blown off with a shotgun and other episodes feature people being shot at or having their lives threatened.

Several characters are killed, most by guns, and there are a couple of physical altercations as well. A few boxing matches are shown and while they're pretty standard, one of the boxing matches in a later episode features one of the fighters getting beaten so bad he ends up in a coma.

Even though there is frequent violence in The Gentlemen, discretion shots are used often, meaning you won't see the bullet making impact or the knife cutting through someone. The camera always cuts away before the goriest moments, making the violence more of a limit-pushing PG-13. If you've watched and enjoyed other Guy Ritchie films, you'll be fine here.

Drugs, strong language, and a few other sensitive subjects

Apart from violence, The Gentlemen is rife with drug-related discussion and strong language. It's a show about British gangsters and drug dealers, so if you're not comfortable with drugs then you should probably skip this one altogether.

Many characters run various criminal empires and several are shown smoking weed throughout the series. Characters also regularly drink alcohol and at least one is shown snorting cocaine a couple of times. Again, if you've seen other films in this genre, particularly content from Ritchie, then you'll know what to expect and won't be phased by it here.