MTRCB bans biblical horror ‘The Carpenter’s Son’ from public screening

MANILA, Philippines – Biblical horror film The Carpenter’s Son has been banned from public screening in the Philippines after receiving an X rating from the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) on Friday, November 28.

Directed by Lotfy Nathan, the film reimagines the childhood of Jesus Christ in a “non-canonical and horror-oriented” way, and was flagged by the board for being “blasphemous or highly offensive,” particularly to the country’s predominantly Christian population. The story takes place in a quiet Egyptian village, where a carpenter and his young family find themselves at the center of unsettling spiritual phenomena.

In an advisory, the MTRCB stated that the film was disapproved for public viewing following two separate review screenings. The board cited violations of the 2004 implementing rules and regulations of the Presidential Decree No. 1986, Article 201 of the Revised Penal Code, and Presidential Decree No. 960 —all of which prohibit content deemed grossly offensive to religion, public morals, and Filipino cultural values.

The film takes inspiration from a Gnostic text considered heretical and presents a young Jesus as “rebellious, malicious, or seemingly under demonic influence,” characteristics that contrast core Christian doctrines. Such creative choices, then, could be seen as deeply unsettling or offensive to religious audiences.

The MTRCB noted that the film allegedly uses sacred icons and imagery in violent, sexual, or degrading contexts, and presents holy figures in ways interpreted as contemptuous rather than artistic. These elements, it said, justify the X rating under PD 960 and Article 201.

A revised version of the film was resubmitted by its distributor, but a different review committee upheld the X rating.

The board had also issued two X ratings to Dreamboi — a film about a trans woman and her obsession with sexual audio content — before approving a third cut with an R-18 classification.

The MTRCB emphasized that the ruling “does not curtail artistic freedom”; rather, it fulfills its mandate to ensure that materials available for public viewing “do not gravely violate standards of morality, decency, or respect for religious beliefs.” – with reports by Angel Baleña/Rappler.com

Angel Baleña is a Rappler intern studying Creative Writing at University of the Philippines Diliman.