Vladimir earns its TV-MA rating with steamy scenes and limited nudity

Whenever Netflix debuts a new show, it's natural for potential viewers to wonder what they're getting themselves into. Even beyond that show's genre and premise, we always want to know what's featured in the content, including explicit language, sex scenes, and graphic nudity. Are any of those featured in Netflix's comedy-drama limited series Vladimir, which has been described as steamy?

Based on the novel of the same name by Julia May Jonas, Vladimir stars Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz as The Protagonist, an unnamed college professor whose life and career are thrown into chaos by her husband's sexual misconduct allegations and her obsession with her new younger colleague Vladimir (Leo Woodall). Before long, her infatuation turns troubling and stranger than fiction.

Wondering what to expect from the content in the eight-episode limited series? We're breaking down what viewers need to know, without giving any major plot points away, about the TV-MA age rating. Before you watch, these are the scenes and situations to look out for!

Vladimir on Netflix rated TV-MA for sex, language, and smoking

According to the show's official page on Netflix, Vladimir has been rated TV-MA for its inclusions of sex, language, and smoking. Because of this age rating, the streaming service stresses that the show is only appropriate for mature audiences, and after watching the show, you will understand why the series shouldn't be watched by younger viewers. Let's take a closer look!

Sex and nudity

Even though Vladimir's premise centers around sex and sexuality, there's no graphic nudity featured, as evident by the age rating's explanation. There's zero female nudity, and the closest the show gets to male nudity is the main male character being shirtless in a number of scenes. He's also seen in nothing but a towel and underwear in other scenes, but male genitalia is not shown. From the outside of his pants, a male character's bulge is shown in a closeup as a female character stares.

However, there's at least one suggestive or sexual scene featured in every episode. Throughout the series, The Protagonist has some pretty steamy sexual fantasies about Vladimir, and that's not a spoiler to say since it's featured in the trailer. Some of these fantasies are more explicit than others, with some finding the male placing his fingers in the woman's mouth, the male non-graphically masturbating, or other situations involving kissing and touching.

There's only one full sex scene shown onscreen between a male and female couple, and while it lasts for a fair amount of time, there's no nudity shown. Aside from other instances of characters suggestively touching each other's body parts, there are frequent graphic conversations about sex and sexuality scattered throughout the season.

Language, smoking, and content warnings

As mentioned above, much of the explicit language stems from discussions and descriptions of sexual matters. In one episode, a supporting character's fictional writing of a romance story is read out loud and contains graphic details of a sexual encounter and male body parts. There are other instances of sex being spoken about casually and graphically.

Vladimir also contains heightened language with the characters using expletives and profanity. Some of these words are the usual cursing suspects, but there's much strong language used, too, like c-nt, c-ck, and other words some viewers might not be comfortable hearing.

In addition to language, multiple characters are seen smoking throughout the series as well as drinking. There's a scene featured in the show of a character crushing a pill and dumping it in another character's alcoholic beverage. Viewers should also be cautioned that the series discusses both sexual assault and suicide, which could be triggering topics for some viewers.

Watch Vladimir only on Netflix.