The Film and Publications Board (FPB) has confirmed that Inxeba (The Wound) is the first 'non-pornographic' film to get the X18 classification, a rating that is usually only given to hardcore porn.
On Wednesday the FPB's Appeal Tribunal overturned a previous classification by the body, giving it an X18, the highest rating a movie or TV series can get.
It came after complaints about the film from The Men and Boy Foundation and the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa.
"There are specific criteria that needs to be met, which includes the showing of genitalia. So we have not rated a movie like this as X18," said the FPB's acting CEO, Abongile Mashile.
Mashile was speaking on 702 and said members of the tribunal are chosen by the minister of communication and there is no consultation process over who gets to be part of the tribunal.
She said the only way to challenge the decision would be to directly petition the minister or head to court.
The producers of Inxeba told TshisaLIVE they were studying the ruling and would be consulting with their lawyers on a decision going forward.
Meanwhile, Nakhane Toure, one of the main actors on the show, spoke out about the decision in a statement released on social media.
"I'm allowed to be emotional. This is my life. These are our lives. And I fucking refuse to live in shame for your patriarchy to keep living. I'm an umXhosa and I don't know what to do with what I love, but doesn't love me."
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