Keep kids out of movies showing smoking: Mihevc

Movies that show tobacco use should be off limits to anyone under 18 unless they have adult supervision, says Toronto’s public health board chair.

Councillor Joe Mihevc wants his board to vote to lobby the Ontario government to make movies with smoking rated 18A, “suitable for viewers 18 years of age and older.

“Viewers under 18 may attend, but must be accompanied by an adult.”

“Smoking is definitely hazardous to your health,” Mihevc said in an interview Monday.

“If we have an opportunity to improve people’s lives in a dramatic way, by stopping the culture that attracts young people to smoking, we will be doing them the grandest favour ever. ...

“We did (smoking restrictions) with restaurants, hospitals, workplaces, and now this is the new frontier. This is not about the nanny state, this is about a state that cares about the well-being of its residents.”

The Ontario Film Review Board says movies rated 18A may contain explicit violence, frequent coarse language, sexual activity and/or horror.

Tobacco use is not among the criteria, but can be listed under “detailed observations” in official descriptions of 18A movies such as Deadpool. Mihevc noted the idea isn’t new. The Lung Association has a website dedicated to smoke-free movies and some U.S. senators are issuing the same call.

Rob Cunningham, senior policy analyst at the Canadian Cancer Society, welcomed Mihevc’s motion, which will be heard by the health board next Monday. Cunningham noted the proposal wouldn’t ban kids from seeing films showing smoking, “but the reality is most teens who want to see a film want to see it without their parents.”