Ellen DeGeneres spent a little more than a minute advocating for the Weinstein Company documentary "Bully" on her nationally televised talk show Wednesday.
"Last month I got to see a new documentary that's coming out called 'Bully,'" DeGeneres said. "It's an important movie for everyone to see — especially kids. The problem is, they've given the movie an R rating."
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DeGeneres said that "there is some language in the movie. It's mature but it's not gratuitous because it's part of the real story of bullying and it's real language that bullies are using — but having an R rating makes it difficult for anyone under 17 to see it."
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The talk show host said that "after seeing it, I can tell you that the lessons that the kids learn from this movie are more important than any words that they might hear — and they're words that they know already anyway."
She said that "You can't show R rated movies in schools — and that's exactly where the movie needs to be shown. So I think it's important for the movie to be rated PG-13."
In the audience for the taping was Katy Butler (right), a 17-year-old Michigan girl who started an online petition through change.org to change the rating to PG — and who delivered more than 200,000 signatures to the MPAA headquarters on Wednesday morning.
"I have signed the petition," DeGeneres said. "And I hope you will, too."
See DeGeneres talking about "Bully" and welcoming Butler here.