A protective device for a vehicle interior having a flexible sheetlike structure provided on opposite sides with side edge regions, a winding shaft rotatably mounted and on which the sheetlike structure is held such that it can be wound up and unwound, and dimensionally rigid pull-out profile fixedly connected to a front face end region of the sheetlike structure in the unwinding direction.Each side edge region of the sheetlike structure cooperates with at least one deflecting guide means which, in a force-fitting and/or form-fitting manner, transmits to the side edge region a tensile force component which acts outward transversely with respect to the winding-up or unwinding direction of the sheetlike structure.