Movie bosses lose This Means War ratings appeal

The bosses of Reese Witherspoon's new movie This Means War have lost their battle to lower the restrictive age rating of the movie.

Film regulators slapped the movie with an R-rating, meaning viewers under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.

Chiefs at 20th Century Fox subsequently appealed against the decision and asked for a PG-13 classification so all teenagers could buy tickets for the action comedy.

But officials at the Motion Picture Association ratings board have rejected the appeal and maintained This Means War's R-rating, citing "some sexual content" for the decision, according to The Hollywood Reporter.