Paul Feig made a name for himself with Bridesmaids (2011), which is celebrating its 15th anniversary this year. Bridesmaids was about two women at odds. It was a comedy and Feig became known for comedies, but he made a darkly humorous film, or a thriller, called A Simple Favor (2018), which was also about two women at odds. That film is specifically about one woman becoming suspicious of another woman, even thinking that this other woman could be crazy or possibly a murderer. The Housemaid (2025) is based on a 2022 novel by Freida McFadden, but that same basic premise of women at odds that Feig has juggled before is essentially present here. However, Feig dials up the eroticism and sexuality, and he does so in a way that cinema has rarely seen, not since the 80's and 90's. Films like Fatal Attraction (1987), Basic Instinct (1992) and The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) are the kinds of erotic thrillers that were standard or regular, but, in the past 20 years, those erotic thrillers were limited to television or streaming, such as on Lifetime Channel or Netflix. In fact, Italian actor, Michele Morrone (365 Days) is an actor with a small role here who is from one such erotic thriller on Netflix. There have been international features like Lust, Caution (2007), The Handmaiden (2017), or 365 Days (2020), but those types of films that are strong erotic thrillers have been few and far between in mainstream cinema.
Sydney Sweeney (The White Lotus and Euphoria) stars as Millie Calloway, a homeless girl who sleeps in her car. She applies for a job as a live-in housekeeper at a wealthy home on Long Island, New York, in an area called Great Neck. She tries to hide the fact that she's on parole after serving in prison. Yet, she gets the job, which is suspicious. Presumably, if you're a mom and you're hiring someone who is going to live in your house and be around your child, then you would do a thorough background check. It's not to say that a former inmate can't be trusted with a second chance or a job opportunity, but someone that wealthy would probably hesitate to do so. That's not the case here. Millie is called almost immediately, which Millie doesn't question at first, but it is suspicious.
Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia! and Mean Girls) co-stars as Nina Winchester, the wealthy woman who hires Millie as the housekeeper and nanny. She's at first super bubbly and super excited to have Millie. She seems like the perfect wife and perfect mother. However, after Millie is hired, we see another side to Nina. She easily loses her temper. She starts doing things to make it seem like Millie isn't doing her job correctly. Nina starts getting angry and even violent at times. As Millie continues working there, she starts hearing rumors and gossip about Nina, including people saying that she used to be in a mental institution, as well as people basically saying that Nina is crazy. Yet, if that's true, then a lot of people wonder why her husband stays married to her.
Brandon Sklenar (Drop and It Ends With Us) also co-stars as Andrew Winchester, the husband to Nina. He's a very wealthy man, having made a fortune in IT and data management. He's very handsome, very charming and very sweet when around Millie or the public. In fact, all the rumors and gossip about him is that he's the perfect man and a saint for taking care of Nina who allegedly has had mental problems and taking care of Nina's daughter who isn't his biological child. He wants biological children, but he hasn't been lucky enough to get Nina pregnant. Millie is attracted to him and it seems as though he's also attracted to her. A man having an affair with his maid or nanny is rather cliché. Arnold Schwarzenegger reportedly did so decades ago, so it's obvious where things are going between Andrew and Millie.
Without spoiling it, this film does become a kind of fresh take on the genre of films that are akin to Fatal Attraction. It's a fresh take on the love triangle where one of the three people is psychotic and dangerous, and it becomes about how do you stop this obsessive and violent person who is willing to hurt people in order to get what they want. Inherent in the screenplay by Emmy-nominee Rebecca Sonnenshine (The Boys and The Vampire Diaries) is this idea of the crazy, jealous woman from such, aforementioned, erotic thrillers. Yet, in a lot of ways, Sonnenshine's script and indeed McFadden's book subverts that idea and that trope. In other ways, this film also inverts the concept of a femme fatale or creates a mystery over who the true "femme fatale" is.
At the core of this film is misogyny. It's ultimately about how badly women are treated, particularly by men, but also by other women. It's about how women are judged, particularly by their looks, although there's an aspect here that's also about how men, if they're highly attractive, can leverage their sex appeal. It's about how women are often exploited, treated as second-class and often are not believed, as well as how easily dismissed they are. As a result, this film is also about female empowerment and how it can be taken back, as well as how women can fight back. If one is a fan of soap opera or melodrama, then this film will be highly entertaining. If one is a fan of Lifetime Channel movies, then this film will also be satisfying, but this film is a step up in quality from anything on that basic cable channel.
Rated R for strong, bloody violent content, sexual assault, sexual content, nudity and language.
Running Time: 2 hrs. and 11 mins.
Available on VOD and Starz on April 1.