Firth doesn't support 'Speech' changes

LOS ANGELES, March 2 (UPI) -- Oscar-winning actor Colin Firth says he wasn't in favor of muting expletives in his film, "The King's Speech," to get a PG-13 rating in the United States.

Firth, who won the best actor Oscar for his work in the movie, utters the swear words during a scene in which his character, King George VI, expresses his frustration in trying to overcome a debilitating stammer.

The film, which won the Best Picture Oscar Sunday, was initially rated R in the United States because of the language. The Motion Picture Association of America last week approved a PG-13 rating for a new cut of the film, in which the curses are inaudible.

"I don't support it," Firth told The Hollywood Reporter backstage at the Oscars.

"I think the film has its integrity as it stands," he said. "It serves a purpose. ... I'm not someone who's casual about that kind of language. I take my children to football games. I hate hearing that kind of language in their ears, but I won't deny them the experience of a live game. But in the context of the film, it couldn't be more edifying, more appropriate. It's not vicious or insulting. It's not in the context that might offend."