'Rush Hour' Gets Trigger Warning: Has Political Correctness Gone Too Far?
A look at modern content warnings.
Rush Hour — the 1998 Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker buddy cop comedy — has been deemed too problematic for today’s audiences.
Recently, USA Network aired the film with a trigger warning before the opening credits, stating:
We now live in an era where satire and broad comedy from before the social media age are flagged like hazardous material. Rush Hour, with its broad humour, culture clashes and PG-13 jokes, hardly compares to genuinely controversial films. Yet it has been lumped in with titles carrying far more questionable content.
In theory, these warnings aim to provide context. In practice, they often feel like a patronising lecture, implying viewers cannot interpret art for themselves. It’s a condescending affront to adult audiences.
We’re not discussing 1930s propaganda reels here, but Rush Hour — a mainstream comedy that grossed $244 million worldwide, spawned two sequels, and introduced Jackie Chan to American audiences. It aired on basic cable for two decades without issue.
Fortunately, some creatives, including Quentin Tarantino, have pushed back against trigger warnings. Tarantino has remarked:
“I reject the word ‘offended’. Anyone can be offended by anything. Saying you’re offended by a film is often the response of a very narrow mind... Art is no offence.”
There is growing fatigue with these warnings — a sense that we’re treating viewers like fragile children rather than adults capable of understanding historical context. Films reflect the era in which they were made; audiences do not need to be coddled or reminded that Rush Hour was made in 1998.
