More and more wild and taboo? Not at all! Young people want fewer sex scenes in TV and movies

Los Angeles - It is often said that younger generations are becoming more and more jaded and taboo-free - especially when it comes to sexual intercourse, the famous "youth of today" is overly enlightened, casual and very experimental. But even if this is true, it is by no means reflected in their attitude to sex in film and television!

Would "50 Shades pf Grey" be as successful today as it was nine years ago? At least not with a younger audience.
Would "50 Shades pf Grey" be as successful today as it was nine years ago? At least not with a younger audience.  © Universal International Pictures

While "new adult" novels and erotic thrillers have been experiencing a hype in certain (also younger) target groups in literature for years, the situation is different for audiovisual formats.

Sex scenes at the heart of the plot are not particularly popular. This was the finding of the "Teens & Screens" study by the "Center for Scholars & Storytellers" at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

The university from the film capital of the world surveyed around 1,500 10 to 24-year-olds in order to "better understand what interests young people and what they want to see in the entertainment media".

A total of 63.5 percent of respondents (those under 14 were not included in the survey) stated that they would prefer stories to focus on friendships rather than sex. 62.4 percent even said that "sexual content" was not necessary as a plot element at all.

"Romance" is out, "nomance" is in, according to the UCLA paper.

In 1999, "American Pie", a comedy about the sexual awakening of a young group of friends, became an international box office hit.
In 1999, "American Pie", a comedy about the sexual awakening of a young group of friends, became an international box office hit.  © dpa | Enterpress_Uip

46 percent want to see more "asexual and aromantic" characters

"Our findings seem to confirm a trend we discovered in our data last year: that young people are tired of seeing the same old-fashioned and incomprehensible romantic clichés on screen," said Alisha J. Hines, the center's research director.

"Teens and young adults want to see stories that more authentically reflect a full spectrum of nuanced relationships."

In fact, nearly one in two respondents said they "want to see more media portrayals of characters who lack sexual and/or romantic attraction to others (asexual and aromantic)."

The researchers of the study came to the following conclusion: "Teenagers and young adults are looking for content that is not only authentic, but also reflects their own values. This is reflected in teenagers' desire for more friendships, more friendliness and more community."