A Texas grand jury recently indicted Netflix for the film “Cuties.” The French film, which follows the story of an 11-year-old who joins a dance group, has received a large volume of controversy upon its release in September due to the sexual nature in which the cast of underage girls is presented.
Fox News reports that the complaint filed in Tyler County states that the streaming platform “knowingly” promoted visual material which “depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 years of age at the time the visual material was created, and which appeals to the prurient interest in sex, and has no serious, literary, artistic political, or scientific value.”
Netflix denies these allegations, standing by the film by claiming it is actually a social commentary against the sexualization of children. The company was served the summons on Oct. 1 by Texas Rangers.
Although Netflix has continued to support “Cuties,” the streaming giant admitted to using inappropriate materials for the promotion of the film’s release. The company apologized for the original description of the film and the poster used for marketing, which depicts the young cast in revealing clothing posed in suggestive dancing positions. Netflix only pulled the imagery after thousands of people signed one of many Change.org petitions in protest.
Representative Matt Schaefer (R-Texas), who has been publicly outspoken against “Cuties” since its release on Netflix, shared a photo of the official indictment on Tuesday. According to The Texan, Schaefer had stated that legal experts would find the film to be pornographic in nature, and could cause Netflix to also possibly face prosecution for the “distribution of harmful material.” Others calling for the removal of the film point to its possible promotion of pedophilia.
If Netflix is convicted, the company could potentially be fined and forced to remove “Cuties” from its platform.
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