New drama Jekyll and Hyde sparked 280 complaints to ITV and 212 to watchdog Ofcom, after viewers called it "too scary" for its pre-watershed timeslot.
Dubbed "Downton with monsters" by its writer Charlie Higson, the ITV drama aired at 18:30 GMT on Sunday and featured scenes of murder and violence.
ITV said it had warned viewers about the scenes, broadcast well before the 21:00 cut-off point for adult content.
But several called it "after the watershed stuff" on Twitter.
A statement from the broadcaster said: "ITV issued a warning before the transmission of Jekyll and Hyde advising parents that it included some violence and scenes that younger children may find scary."
Set in 1930s London, the series is based on the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novel of the same name and follows the story of Jekyll's grandson, Dr Robert Jekyll, who has a monster called Hyde suppressed within him.
The first episode - which was watched by an average of 3.4 million people, peaking at 3.6 million - featured the brutal murder of Jekyll's foster parents as well as a violent bar fight and a half-human, half-dog creature called a Harbinger.
Several viewers voiced their disapproval on Twitter, including Mark Waugh who said it was "not on" to show the episode before the watershed, adding that it "scared my kids".
Julie Mayer said it was "not for the eyes of young children", while another viewercalled it "too violent and scary when young children are still up".
However others defended the show, calling it "no scarier or creepier than Doctor Who", or tweeting: "Jekyll and Hyde wasn't scary one bit. Kids watch way scarier films than that [which] are rated PG."
John Amaechi wrote: "Loved it. Should be post-watershed, but amazed by parents outraged that their children saw it. CHANGE. THE. CHANNEL."
An ITV spokesperson confirmed the show would be airing in the later timeslot of 19:00 GMT this coming Sunday, but said that scheduling had been decided last week before the complaints.
Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom said on Monday it would "assess" the 212 complaints it had received, "before deciding whether to investigate or not".
Source: BBC
Dubbed "Downton with monsters" by its writer Charlie Higson, the ITV drama aired at 18:30 GMT on Sunday and featured scenes of murder and violence.
ITV said it had warned viewers about the scenes, broadcast well before the 21:00 cut-off point for adult content.
But several called it "after the watershed stuff" on Twitter.
A statement from the broadcaster said: "ITV issued a warning before the transmission of Jekyll and Hyde advising parents that it included some violence and scenes that younger children may find scary."
Set in 1930s London, the series is based on the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novel of the same name and follows the story of Jekyll's grandson, Dr Robert Jekyll, who has a monster called Hyde suppressed within him.
The first episode - which was watched by an average of 3.4 million people, peaking at 3.6 million - featured the brutal murder of Jekyll's foster parents as well as a violent bar fight and a half-human, half-dog creature called a Harbinger.
Several viewers voiced their disapproval on Twitter, including Mark Waugh who said it was "not on" to show the episode before the watershed, adding that it "scared my kids".
Julie Mayer said it was "not for the eyes of young children", while another viewercalled it "too violent and scary when young children are still up".
However others defended the show, calling it "no scarier or creepier than Doctor Who", or tweeting: "Jekyll and Hyde wasn't scary one bit. Kids watch way scarier films than that [which] are rated PG."
John Amaechi wrote: "Loved it. Should be post-watershed, but amazed by parents outraged that their children saw it. CHANGE. THE. CHANNEL."
An ITV spokesperson confirmed the show would be airing in the later timeslot of 19:00 GMT this coming Sunday, but said that scheduling had been decided last week before the complaints.
Broadcasting watchdog Ofcom said on Monday it would "assess" the 212 complaints it had received, "before deciding whether to investigate or not".
Source: BBC