“I wasn’t allowed to watch ‘The Lion King’ because my mom didn’t like premeditated murder.”

The Little Mermaid

I had a friend whose father was a pastor and he reportedly burned the VHS when he found out his kids watched it because “mermaids are demonic.” Making matters worse, the movie was rented.
—CB3o

Disney

The Fairly Odd Parents

My mom felt they made the parents act too stupid on the show and didn’t want us thinking all parents were that dumb. So what did we do? We went next door to my grandparent’s house and watched it anyway.
—alixb40fa4db5f

Nickelodeon

Power Rangers

My mom thought they were too violent. Although, she couldn’t have been too concerned, because I had an addendum to the rule that if I was at a friend’s house and they wanted to watch Power Rangers, I was to watch to be polite.
—emilyh100

Saban Entertainment

Harry Potter

Witchcraft is condemned in the Bible. When I got a little older I read the series and watched all the movies, honestly just to spite them. I ended up becoming obsessed. I’ve been a Potterhead for 10 years and I still think that part of the reason is some sort of childhood rebellion.
—morgang443fa9b4f

Warner Bros

That’s So Raven

My father wouldn’t let my younger half-siblings watch this one because (according to him) it portrayed white people as stupid.
—ashleighmay2011

Disney

The Lion King

I wasn’t allowed to watch it because my mom didn’t like premeditated murder.
—erinmarcellais

Disney

No Disney films, period.

I wasn’t allowed to watch anything Disney as a kid because my mom didn’t want to give money to a company that supports homosexuality. Now I work at Magic Kingdom and my girlfriend works at Hollywood Studios.
—thejessi

Disney

Titanic

My friends all assumed it was because of the sex scene, but my mom knew I wouldn’t be able to handle death, especially the dead bodies floating in the water.
I was even in a local production of Titanic: The Musical when I was 11 years old, but my mom absolutely refused to let me see the movie beforehand.
—indiaa4ada4ca1c

Paramount Pictures

The Teletubbies

My parents were too weirded out by the show and thought it was some kind of drug fueled nightmare. Honestly, I don’t blame them.
—rubyjudej

Ragdoll Productions

Veggie Tales

My mom wouldn’t let me it because it was religious. She’s not AGAINST religion, but she explained that she didn’t want to force anyone else’s views on me. Up until adulthood, I thought it was a regular cartoon about vegetables.
—lindseyn4de956002

NBC

Hercules

My dad wouldn’t let me watch it because and I quote, “There is only one true God.”
—kaitisug

Disney

Pokémon

One of the “elders” in my church gave a sermon one time stating that the characters and names were of demonic origin. Yet, they let us what any Disney movies, play Zelda video games, and trade Yu-Gi-Oh! cards. I guess it needed to officially be restricted in a sermon for them to care?
—dianau4258420c8

TV Tokyo

One Tree Hill

When the show came out in 2003, I was nine and loved it immediately. My parents told me there was NO WAY I could watch it, because it was too mature for my age group. My friends loved American Idol, so my parents would let me go into their bedroom and watch that with her over the phone with my friend. Little did anyone know, I was secretly watching One Tree Hill and just pretending to watch American Idol on the phone with my friend.
—emmyw4e1e28c8b

The CW

Lizzie McGuire

They felt that Lizzie’s parents were purposely portrayed as dumb, and Lizzie manipulated them often. They didn’t want me to pick up this behavior. It’s fine, I grew to resent Hilary Duff because she was dating MY MAN Joel Madden! The 2000’s…what at time to be alive.
—mykhaze

Disney

Friends

My dad wouldn’t let us watch it because he said, “it’s just a show about a bunch of friends sleeping with each other.”
—ashleyr56

TBS

Mulan

My mom returned the VHS after she heard the ancestors call Mulan “a crossdresser.” I’m pretty sure she even sent a letter to Disney about it, and they gave us A Bugs Life in exchange. It was years before I actually got to see the film.
—beccers

Disney

The Sound of Music

I wasn’t allowed to watch the second half. They would always shut it off after the wedding scene. No Nazis!
—jessl44432cacd

20th Century Fox

Powerpuff Girls

Apparently after watching one episode when I was super-young, I went crazy and, according to my parents, I “tried to destroy the house.”
—auroraninetynine

Cartoon Network

The Wizard of Oz

My mom believed that the movie was made by the “hand of the devil,” and if I watched it, I would henceforth lead a life of sin. To this day, I have still never seen this movie.
—a466ce2e0a

MGM

SpongeBob SquarePants

My mom said it was because it would make us “stupid,” but later in my life she revealed that it just annoyed her. It doesn’t matter anyway because the joke was on her! We watched it at our grandparents house all the time, and they never told her.
—strangerthanitseems

Nickelodeon

No TV, period.

We never had one in our home, and I had to leave the classroom if something was being shown on a TV. Didn’t matter if it was strictly educational. We grew up in a very strict church that considered TV a “one-eyed devil”.
—ivorydragon217

MGM Entertainment