Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back - MPAA Rating and GLAAD Controversy

MPAA Rating and GLAAD Controversy

In August 2001, three weeks before the theatrical release, the film came under fire from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), for its "overwhelmingly homophobic tone", which included an abundance of gay jokes and characters excessively using the term "gay" to mean something derogatory. The scenes deemed particularly offensive included the Jay character's vehement refusal of giving oral sex to a male driver when hitchhiking, and Jay chastising Silent Bob for being willing to perform fellatio on him to get the security guard (Diedrich Bader) to let them go. Following an advance screening of the film, former GLAAD media director Scott Seomin asked writer-director Smith to make a $10,000 donation to the Matthew Shepard Foundation, as well as to include a reference to GLAAD's cause in the ending credits.

On the bonus disc of the two-disc DVD, Kevin Smith explains in the on-camera intros of the deleted scenes that several scenes had to be cut from the theatrical release, due to the film initially receiving an MPAA rating of NC-17. He also mentions in the audio commentary of the feature film that it took three submissions to the MPAA for the film to earn an R rating.