 "I Drink Your Blood" was one of the first films to receive an X-rating from the Motion Picture Association of America based on violence rather than nudity.Several scenes needed to be altered to qualify the film for an "R", so the producer distributed the original film, asking that each projectionist censor the film as they saw fit for their market.However, "BoxOffice" magazine reported in January 1971 that the Code and Ratings Appeals Board re-rated the film R "after hearing an appeal at which time the film's distributor ... agreed to make certain cuts and insert additional footage at the request of the MPAA".