The Housemaid

Release Date: December 19, 2025
Runtime: 131 minutes
Rating: R
Studio/US Distributor: Lionsgate
Director: Paul Feig
Cast: Amanda Seyfried; Sydney Sweeney; Brandon Sklenar; Michele Morrone; Indiana Elle; Ellen Tamaki; Elizabeth Perkins

Let’s be clear. The Housemaid is trash of the very highest order. And like any good trashy movie worth its salt, this movie is meant to be enjoyed on a perverse level. That’s not to say The Housemaid is not enjoyable, far from it. While it might leave a sour aftertaste, The Housemaid is never for one moment not supremely entertaining.

Basically, the movie falls into the thriller subgenre of the “FILL IN THE BLANK FROM HELL” movie. Almost all of these movies are trash on an elemental level. Some are quite good, such as Curtis Hanson’s The Hand That Rocks the Cradle. Some, not so good, like Tom Holland’s The Temp. What will surprise you about this particular film is that the person whom you might think would be the one from hell, isn’t. Sydney Sweeney plays Millie, a drifter with a dubious past who happens upon a job as a live-in housemaid for the Winchester family: dad Andrew (Brandon Sklenar), mom Nina (Amanda Seyfried), and cute little daughter, CeCe (Indiana Elle). But of course, there is a cute little daughter because God-forbid any child in this type of movie be above the age of seven.

How Millie finds out about this job isn’t quite clear. But what is even more remarkable is that Nina hires her. By her own admission, Millie’s resume is complete bullshit and easily un-verified with a simple background check. Nevertheless, Millie accepts the job and moves into the Winchester mansion in Great Neck. Almost immediately, shit starts to hit the fan. Nina is certifiably nuts, throwing tantrums over fabricated scenarios she concocts. Andrew is almost too much of a saintly husband, and you know there will eventually be taboo sexual tension between him and Millie (How can there not be? Two hotties stuck together under one roof while trauma bonding?). The daughter is strangely aloof. There is a creepy groundskeeper (Michele Morrone) who seems to know something but is keeping mum for the time being. It’s all very Stepford-like.

In time, however, Millie is imparted intel by way of the area nannies and even Nina’s “friends.” It turns out that Nina has a rather colorful past that could very well explain her behavior. When the reason, and the twist, eventually comes, it’s not entirely surprising on its face. Any frequent thriller watcher who has a basic understanding of the formula will probably lock onto it. But what moves the movie beyond the trite and saves it from being a potential letdown is that The Housemaid goes a bit further, flushing out the twist and giving it more specificity and gravitas beyond the initial denouement (The Housemaid was written by Rebecca Sonnenshine from the book by Freida McFadden). The actual ending is more-or-less what you would expect it to be, but because the movie doesn’t just progress immediately from twist to ending via a few scenes, taking some time to truly nurture it’s twist, the plot as a whole holds more weight and, therefore, makes for a more entertaining piece of entertainment.

Amanda Seyfried steals the show. She throws herself, quite literally, into this role. This sort of role isn’t something I’ve seen before from this talented actress, and she engulfs the character with her entire being. Seyfried knows exactly what type of movie she is in and she dials up her performance appropriately to just tip it over the line into camp, without barreling past it. It’s really quite remarkable to watch. She is without a doubt one of the most talented actresses of her generation. This is not an easy role to play and Seyfried doesn’t hit a false note.

Sweeney is quite good in a performance that is more muted. This is probably intentional since Sweeney’s performance level makes sense for the character she is playing. But I still got the feeling that Sweeney thought she might be in some sort of highbrow thriller, which The Housemaid is not. In other words, Seyfried got the joke, Sweeney might have misunderstood the assignment just a little. Still, her performance style is interesting: casual and modern. I would absolutely love to go have a few beers with Sydney Sweeney, that’s the type of actress she is, and there is absolutely a place for this type of actress (see Sandra Bullock).

Brandon Sklenar does the most with his role, looking and acting the part effectively as the sexy, almost too charismatic Andrew. And hooray!!, Elizabeth Perkins makes an appearance as Andrew’s ice queen mother!! Perkins is one of my favorite actresses from the 80s and early 90s (About Last Night…, Big, The Flintstones) and even though she has been active in TV for years (notably in Weeds), it was such a pleasure to see her turn up for a few scenes.

The Housemaid is stylishly and very well-directed by Paul Feig, who made, among other pics, Bridesmaids, a completely different type of movie altogether. This man is quite the cinematic journeyman.

So, The Housemaid is trash. But it is well-produced, well-directed, and well-acted trash. Too good to be a guilty pleasure, not good enough to be rendered a classic of the genre. Just great-looking people doing very bad things to each other. What fun!