10 Kids TV Shows That Are Based On Violent Movies

Over the years, there have been many children’s television shows with questionable origins, some of which were inspired by films that are too violent for kids. While there are scary kid’s shows and kids shows with sad characters, there is also the trend of taking more mature properties, often from rated-R movies, and turning them into cartoons for children. It is a strange practice, but it has created recognizable points that have been a part of many children’s childhood.

Still, because such drastic changes need to be made to the original property to adapt it into something more suitable for kids, one wonders why anyone would adopt them at all. Wouldn’t other properties fit a kids show better? Regardless of that, some of the cartoons created ended up being amazing while others fell flat.

10

Highlander: The Animated Series (1994-1996)

The children’s series takes Highlander to the 27th century

Releasing nearly a decade after the original Highlander movie, Highlander: The Animated Series Follows the story of one of Connor MacLeod’s descendants, a boy named Quentin, as he struggles to fight back against an evil ruler named Kortan some 700 years after the death of his ancestor. The setting of Highlander: The Animated Series is much different than in the original film, which takes place in 1985 in New York City.

Although the violence is toned down significantly in the animated series, it is quite present in both the originals Highlander movie and the movies that would follow. This is because The only way to kill a Highlander is by decapitationMaking this an incredibly important point throughout the series that is even shown on screen. The craziest part is that this concept is still present in the children’s cartoon, retaining some of its darker tendencies even during the transition to animation.

9

The Mask (1995-1997)

The original comic books are even more violent than the movie

Many people know The mask From the wacky Jim Carrey film that was released in 1994. However, a year later an animated series was made after the film became a hit with adults and kids. There’s a lot of fantasy violence and out-of-this-world hijinks in this film, and while it can be gory at times, there’s nothing too gruesome or bloody in the film itself.

Where the real violence comes is in the comic book series that The mask is based on. Created by Dark Horse Comics, The Mask, also known as the Big Head Killer, is less of a public nuisance and more of an indiscriminate killer. The mask Comics include incredibly disturbing depictions of gore and violenceMaking them chilling reading for any adult and an off-putting choice for a kids show adaptation.

8

Roughnecks: Starship Troopers Adventure Chronicles (1999)

This sci-fi action film is not a kid friendly watch

Best known for his relentless action and satirical take on fascism, Starship Troopers Seems like the latest franchise that would get a children’s show adaptation. Not only are soldiers’ bodies cut in half by massive bugs in the first few minutes of the movie, but the message of the Starship Troopers is something that has been misunderstood by many adults for years. How would the subject material transfer to a kids show?

The answer comes in the form of Roughnecks: Starship Troopers ChroniclesA 3-D animated series that focuses on individual missions that the main characters go on. The missions typically involve killing bugs and saving cities, with little exploration aside from that. The violence has been toned down significantly to change the source material into something more suitable for children, making it more like a shallow version of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

7

Police Academy (1988-1989)

The Comedy Cup film became a children’s show

Based on the film franchise of the same name, Police Academy was an animated series that took an adult comedy and turned it into a family-friendly crime series. It follows a group of academy graduates, some more eager to stop crime than others. The series was incredibly popular, with a total of 65 episodes over 2 seasons.

Although not completely different from the live action films, Police Academy Was significantly less mature than its predecessors. The original Police Academy Movie is filled with innuendo, depicting sexual harassment, nudity, the use of slurs and gun violence. It’s important to note that the animated series includes none of this, instead focusing on a more “bad guy of the week” formula.

6

Beetlejuice (1989-1991)

Tim Burton’s character Beetlejuice sees a dramatic change

Although the original Beetlejuice The film is perhaps one of the least violent comparatively, it still features scenes of violence in which Beetlejuice attempts to kill the Deetz family. This, along with the many different sex jokes throughout the film, solidifies Beetlejuice As a film meant for an older audience. However, in the cartoon version of beetlejuice, The titular character is transformed from a violent ghost desperate to come back to life into a well-meaning, if not a little disgusting, prankster.

This version of Beetlejuice, although toned down, retains the same kind of fantasy imagery that was present in the original Beetlejuice film and still manages to be an incredible children’s show. Since the release of the cartoon, Beetlejuice It also got a successful movie sequel and a fun musical adaptation that is still touring the country to this day. Although no two versions of the “Ghost with the Most” are the same, they all hit the heart of a whimsical and beloved Tim Burton character.

5

Toxic Crusaders (1991-1993)

Based on the vulgar Troma movie

Toxic Crusaders is a 1991 animated children’s show based on The toxic revenge Film series. It was a short series with only 13 episodes, revolving around the story of Toxie, a janitor who is transformed into a mutant with special powers after falling into a drum of toxic waste. The animated series depicts Toxi as he fights against villains who mean to pollute the environment.

It’s a far cry from the original films. While The toxic revenge Still about Toxie’s fight against polluters and villains who would destroy the environment, the films are known for their over-the-top scenes and joyous violence. Although the original film was released in 1984, a reboot for The toxic revenge Franchise premiere in 2023.

4

Conan the Adventurer (1992-1993)

The animated series brought Conan the Barbarian to a younger audience

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as the titular character, Conan the Barbarian was a film about Conan and his quest to seek revenge for his parents’ death. The film was originally based on a comic book series, and once the film was released, the name Conan became synonymous with violence and death. The property has spawned several adaptations, including a sequel, a reboot, and a children’s animated series called Conan the Adventurer.

The animated series was incredibly popularStanding at the time among other popular animated shows such as He-Man and the Masters of the Universe And Dungeons & Dragons. Despite being made for kids, the show stays remarkably true to the source material. Nevertheless, like many similar adaptations, the violence is toned down, and the mature content is scrubbed from the narrative.

3

robocop (1988)

It continues where the original RoboCop left off

Meant to be an alternate universe continuation of the original Robocop movie, the animated version of Robocop Typically consists of different missions assigned to the protagonist of the series, the titular cyborg cop known as Alex Murphy. The series features many of the same characters as the film, however Robocop‘s animated series made some specific changes to the world and canon of the series to make it suitable for young audiences.

An example of the changes is that bullets were replaced with lasers to avoid including bullets in a show made for children. Perhaps the biggest change made to the franchise was the recommendation of Clarence Boddicker’s death, as he is alive and well in the animated series. These changes are some of the most frightening when it comes to adapting violent movies into children’s cartoons, viz Robocop was such a great movie to begin with that it would be hard to make it into a children’s show without changing a great deal about it.

2

Rambo: The Force For Freedom (1986)

The animated series is completely different from the Rambo film

The original Rambo Film First blood Follows Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo, a veteran of the Vietnam War depicted as PTSD, who snaps under the abuse he suffers after his arrest. What follows is a bloody battle between Rambo and the police in a film meant to criticize the Vietnam War, painting Rambo as a victim. After this film, a whole franchise of Rambo Cinema was created, and this included the animated children’s series Rambo: The Force of Freedom.

Rambo: The Force of Freedom was incredibly different from the movie it was based on, not only because it scrubbed the story of its more graphic violence, but also because it changed the story entirely. Instead of a veteran suffering from PTSD, Rambo’s backstory was fictionalized. Vietnam is never mentioned, and Rambo works for the military to fight terroristsThe story that was originally told is completely irrelevant.

1

Mortal Kombat: Defenders Of The Realm (1995-1996)

A bloody video game has become a children’s cartoon

Although these Mortal Kombat series best known for its legion of incredibly violent video games, the popularity and general cult status of its 1995 film was exponential for the franchise. It was so popular that it inspired an animated spin-off series the following year, which debuted as Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm. Although the show features many of the characters seen in both the movie and the games, it doesn’t feel like a contributing part of the franchise.

took out all the violence that Mortal Kombat is so famous for, Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm Followed characters such as Liu Kang and Raiden and their attempts to protect Earthrealm from evil. Scenes from the 1995 movie were referenced and even recreated, such as Liu Kang’s iconic fight with Sub-Zero, but were gutted to make them family-friendly. The series is more than a quick cash grab to capitalize on the film’s successAnd it didn’t last longer than one season.