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11 Controversial Outdoor Movie and TV Ads: From ‘The Virginity Hit’ to ‘Ted 2’ (Photos)

These posters and billboards have sparked outcry for depicting sex, violence and torture

| June 25, 2015 @ 6:25 PM Last Updated: June 25, 2015 @ 7:09 PM
Roadside Attractions
"The Road to Guantanamo" (2006)MPAA rules prohibit depictions of torture in movie posters, so the ads for "The Road to Guantanamo," set on a U.S. military base in Cuba, had to be reworked to remove the image of a detainee's head in a burlap sack
Universal Pictures
"Ted 2" (2015)Like the 2012 original, "Ted 2" heavily utilized raunch in its advertising, including posters showing Seth MacFarlane's teddy bear facing away from the camera and the words "Ted is coming, again"
Warner Bros.
"Magic Mike XXL" (2015)The sequel to Channing Tatum's male stripper movie "Magic Mike" upped the innuendo factor in it's advertising, using phrases like "Coming" and "Back to the Grind" on its posters.
After Dark
"Captivity" (2007)Ads for the Elisha Cuthbert horror flick featuring images of the actress being kidnapped and tortured caused an outrage when they appeared on billboards around Los Angeles. The studio later explained that the wrong ads were sent to the printer
The Weinstein Company
"Zack and Miri Make a Porno" (2008)Even the suggestion of oral sex in the posters for the Elizabeth Banks/Seth Rogen comedy was enough to get them banned by the MPAA
Twitter
"American Sniper" (2014)A West Los Angeles billboard for 2014's "American Sniper" was vandalized with graffiti reading "Murder!" after the movie received criticism for promoting war
Sony Pictures
"The Virginity Hit" (2010)Billboards for "The Virginity Hit" simply read, "Still a virgin?" with the number of a hotline to call for help, prompting campaigns for the posters to be removed
Columbia Pictures
"The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo" (2011)David Fincher's adaptation of the Swedish novel drew criticism for its ads featuring Daniel Craig wrapping his arms around a topless Rooney Mara
Twitter
"Diana" (2013)A poster for the Princess Diana biopic starring Naomi Watts was inadvertently placed just feet away from the site of her fatal car accident, causing an uproar and the poster's removal
The Strain billboard
FX
"The Strain" (2014)Billboards for FX's horror series "The Strain" received a disgusted response on social media that was strong enough to convince the network to take them down
Bravo
"Girlfriend's Guide to Divorce" (2014)The posters for Bravo's first scripted series featured star Lisa Edelstein showing off her bare ring finger in a manner scandalous enough to get them banned from buses and subways in New York and Los Angeles.