vampirecorleone:

“The title of the films refers to the X rating used by the MPAA from 1968 to 1990, which indicated that a film was only suitable for an audience aged 16 or older. The idea behind the rating was that, unlike the other certificates, X would not be trademarked, and would allow filmmakers to release their film in theaters without needing to submit it to the MPAA for an age certificate. Notable films that were originally released with an X rating include A Clockwork Orange (1971), Fritz the Cat (1972), Last Tango in Paris (1972), Midnight Cowboy (1969), and Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song (1971). In the ’70s, the porn industry would end up exploiting the X rating’s lack of a trademark by releasing pornos in theaters with that same rating. Eventually, X became more associated with porn, and more and more theaters started refusing to show films with an X rating, forcing non-pornographic films to be censored to receive an R rating. In 1990, the MPAA discontinued the X rating and replaced it with NC-17. Unlike X, NC-17 was trademarked and could not be self-applied, but it still meant that most theaters would not show films with the rating, resulting in censorship, once again.”

X (2022) dir. Ti West