Netflix has been indicted on child pornography charges by a Texas grad jury for its distribution of the film Cuties on its platform. Cuties was added to Netflix on September 9th after winning at the Sundance Film Festival last February. Netflix and top executives are being accused of “promotion of lewd visual material depicting a child.” The first page handed down on September 23rd of the grand jury’s findings was posted on state reps Matt Schaefer’s twitter.
The indictment accuses that Netflix did “knowingly promote visual material which depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or public area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 years of age at the time” the indictment also argues that Cuties appeals to the prurient interest in sex, and has no serious, literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.
Netflix recently gave a statement to the New York Post standing by their decision to distribute the film.
“Cuties is a social commentary against the sexualization of young children. This charge is without merit and we stand by the film.”