Star Wars: The Force Awakens gets a 12A rating, just like Episode III

Star Wars: The Force Awakens has been rated 12A by the BBFC, making it the second film in the series to receive the rating after Revenge of the Sith in 2004. The UK rating will remain consistent with the United States' MPAA, which confirmed last month that The Force Awakens is rated PG-13.

Despite the occasional severed limb and massacred jedi preschooler, the Star Wars series is generally regarded as family friendly. It doesn't look like The Force Awakens will do too much to buck that trend, though the BBFC does warn of some "moderate violence" and some "very mild bad language." Probably from that pottymouth R2-D2.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens will begin screening in UK cinemas on December 17 and open in North America a day later. Don't worry about sticking around for an after-credits scene when it finally arrives - director JJ Abrams says all of The Force Awakens' scenes "are actually in the movie."

Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.