Netflix has a strict rule in place for smoking scenes in its shows after backlash

Many people will have stopped smoking at the start of the New Year, but turning on the TV to see your favourite characters lighting up doesn't exactly make the process any easier.

Sadly, you can't rely on Netflix to distract yourself from the intense nicotine cravings - as a ton of characters in our favourite series are pretty partial to a puff.

It is part of the reason why the streaming platform introduced a strict rule regarding the nasty habit after they were previously slammed for the excessive use of smoking scenes in some of its most popular series.

Cigarettes are a form of currency in Orange is the New Black, Joyce and Hopper are never seen without a cig in Stranger Things, and the Royals are more than partial to a puff in The Crown - so you can't move for it.

Don't get me wrong; some characters suit it and make it an integral part of their personality.

Some iconic scenes wouldn't be the same without a cloud of smoke separating the characters and the token non-smoker coughing their guts up in the corner.

But the act has quite an impact on viewers too.

Following the release of the third Stranger Things series in July 2019, something had to give.

Netflix

A report from public health nonprofit group Truth Initiative found that the hit show was one of the worst offenders on Netflix in regards to the inclusion of smoking scenes.

It found that there was tobacco in 100 per cent of episodes in the second season - and don't get me wrong, the cast probably need a cig after all the crap they go through.

Viewers admitted they had been tempted by the scenes at the time, with one saying that Stranger Things is 'the reason I started smoking cigs again'.

Another wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter): "I haven't smoked in 12 years, and really don't ever want to, nor will ever, start again.

"But all that smoking in Stranger Things is making me itch for a drag even after all this time. FFS."

It forced Netflix to examine the impact its productions were having on people watching at home, and it decided to introduce a strict rule limiting smoking scenes.

In the wake of the report, the streaming platform announced that all new shows it commissions with ratings of TV-14 or below (and all films rated PG-13 or below) would exclude smoking and e-cigarette use, except for 'reasons of historical or factual accuracy'.

Netflix

They also added that new projects with higher ratings will not depict smoking or e-cigarette use 'unless it's essential to the creative vision of the artist or because it's character-defining (historically or culturally important)'.

A spokesperson said of the matter: "Netflix strongly supports artistic expression. We also recognise that smoking is harmful and, when portrayed positively on screen, can adversely influence young people."

In the report, Truth Initiative said that since 2018, tobacco on the small screen has more than doubled.

Despite tobacco advertising limitations, an estimated 28 million young people saw tobacco on their screen, and more than 200 tobacco incidents in programs rated TV-Y7 and TV-PG.