Top 23 Most Controversial Movies of Each Year (2000 - 2022)

There's always someone waiting to be outraged! For this list, we’ll be looking at the films from 2000 onwards that stirred up the most conversation or backlash. Our countdown includes "Joker", "Nymphomaniac", "Hounddog" and more! Did we forget a film that stoked the flames of controversy? Let us know in the comments below.

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#controversy #movies #music #joker #starwars #ghostbusters #greenlantern #dceu

[WatchMojo]

Did we forget a film that stoked the flames of controversy? Let us know in the comments below.

[xaviersaikaley]

Cuties was so controversial it couldn't make the list?

[matthewdrummond]

From A Serbian Film to Green Lantern 😳

[snoozy]

2000: Battle Royale
2001: Pearl Harbor
2002: Irreversible
2003: The Brown Bunny
2004: The Passion of the Christ
2005: Hostel
2006: Shortbus
2007: Hounddog
2008: Martyrs
2009: AntiChrist
2010: A Serbian Film
2011: Green Lantern
2012: Zero Dark Thirty
2013: Nymphomaniac
2014: The Interview
2015: Fifty Shades of Grey
2016: Ghostbusters
2017: Star Wars Episode VIII - The Last Jedi
2018: Green Book
2019: Joker
2020: Borat Subsequent MovieFilm
2021: Music
2022: Blonde

[elisarosario]

Wasn't Fifty Shades of Grey also controversial for its depiction of BDSM and how inaccurate it was?

[mattdabeast]

The joker thing feels like a repeat of video game being “violent and affecting the mind of people in a negative way”

[NaticzkaKaminskaHenryDolphin]

2000 movie is the wrong choice. Should be American Psycho. The controversy surrounding this film was crazy even before it was made. The very announcement about the making of this film caused crazy reactions, anyone who was old enough at that time remembers it perfectly. Feminists and the media furiously protested and organized actions against the film, death threats were sent to Christian Bale, and people in the movie industry openly told him that playing the role would be career suicide.

Sponsors like Rolex didn't want to be associated with the movie in a loud way, so the original line 'don't touch the Rolex' was changed into 'don't touch the watch'. It was a total frenzy, after the release too. Director had to cut some sex scenes out, and only after this edit, the movie was released in theatres!

Yet thank God American Psycho was made, as it not only stood the test of time better than almost any other controversial movie, it became iconic and cult classic for a reason - the movie just perfectly portrays and mocks sick modern society, especially society of 2022, and that's even more remarkable if you think about it. Timeless masterpiece and def was ahead of its time!

[sashag.a.]

Why call a bad movie controversial? If there is bad acting, bad story, bad ratings, it's a bad film. Also, casting women in lead roles is not controversial. But taking a dead/dying franchise and throttling it for a few more dollars is degrading for viewers and offensive to fans.

[BX]

That's hilarious that Willem DaFoe was in "Antichrist". He played Jesus in "Last Temptation of Christ"

[gspendlove]

I've got to say, Joker is one of the most amazing films I've ever seen, and I've been a movie buff for forty-five years. As Roger Ebert would say, that movie takes you out of your seat and into a world of its own. You can't stop watching it, and the climax of that movie is just shocking. Kudos to Todd Phillips, Robert Dr Niro and especially Joaquin Phoenix, who really gave that performance his all and made Arthur Fleck come to life.

[fromthehaven]

I'm proud to say that I got to see The Interview at a movie theater as it was originally intended.

[RanduxSA]

In 2013 we were truly blessed to have "Blue Is The Warmest Colour" and "Nymphomaniac" release in the same year.

[nicholashale]

Ghostbusters was underwhelming for sure (though it still had some good moments) but the biggest issue most people had w/ it was because they said it wouldn't be a "reboot" to draw in original fans and would acknowledge the previous movies, but after the trailers came out it was very clear that wasn't the intent and it was indeed a reboot.

[RayMcElroy]

Rian Johnson should give up the idea of making Star Wars movies and focus on original projects instead

[jevinday]

I actually loved the fact that Joker resembled The King of Comedy, I had just watched it less than a year before joker came out so it was kind of fresh in my mind and I thought it was pretty brilliant to have DeNiro playing the interviewer. Lars von Trier is my favorite filmmaker. I was hoping you'd put The House That Jack Built for 2018 because a bunch of pretentious asses walked out of the screening at Cannes, but I get why you chose the Green Book. Good list! I haven't seen irreversible yet but it's on my list. Martyrs and A Serbian Film were much less hard to stomach than I thought they would be, I personally thought that the metaphorical value outweighed the graphic violence. I also felt the same way about the passion of the Christ, I am not a Christian but I do think that Jesus is a beautiful historical figure and thought that the way they were able to humanize Jesus was incredible.

[jpmtlhead]

Heath Ledger "Joker" is a Masterpiece, but this Joachim Phoenix "Joker" is the most Scary of them all.
Stuff of Nightmares.

[matthewvorwald]

I remember hearing about movies like The Interview, Ghostbusters 2016, and Joker quite a bit, especially The Interview and Joker. I remember seeing it on the news for both of those movies, especially Joker because the families of the victims of the Dark Knight Rises early screening shooting were afraid that if Joker was released in theaters, something similar to that was going to happen. As for The Interview, I remember hearing that theaters refused to show it. I also remember the movie The Hunt I think it's called was supposed to be released in 2019, but due to the two shootings happening just days if not a week apart, the studio decided to delay its release until 2020, just before the lockdown happened.

[emberslayer]

Battle Royale is one of my favorite movies! Given the subject matter, I think it was pulled off quite well.

[thefriendlyschizo]

William Dafoe is in so many wild films, I love him

[Schmuck]

I still didn't understand why Viggo Mortensen's character in the Green Book movie was eating all the time