A struggling woman’s new job with a wealthy family pulls her into a dangerous game of secrets and power. A film by Paul Feig, starring Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Indiana Elle, Elizabeth Perkins, Sarah Cooper, Ellen Tamaki, Megan Ferguson, Amanda Joy Erickson, Alexandra Seal, and Michele Morrone.

Millie Calloway (Sydney Sweeney) arrives at the Winchester residence for an interview with Nina Winchester (Amanda Seyfried) for a housemaid position. Nina is impressed by Millie’s overqualified résumé, which includes extensive experience and a college degree, but she’s completely unaware that it’s all fabricated. When Nina asks why someone with Millie’s credentials would choose housekeeping, Millie simply says she enjoys working as a housemaid for the right family.

Nina explains that the job mostly involves organizing, cleaning, possibly some cooking, and helping care for her seven-year-old daughter Cecilia. She takes Millie on a tour of the house, which her husband Andrew designed himself. She shows Millie the kitchen and the upper living room, mentioning that Millie is welcome to use it whenever she likes. Millie is surprised by how tidy and spotless everything already looks even without a housekeeper, so she asks Nina if she really needs one. Nina reveals she’s expecting a baby and won’t have much time to keep everything perfect. However, she asks Millie not to mention the pregnancy to Andrew because it’s still very early and she wants to be sure. Nina then leads Millie upstairs to the room that would be hers if she gets the job. Before they finish, Nina mentions she’s still interviewing other candidates but hopes to decide soon. She hands Millie a twenty-dollar bill for her time and gas, insisting she take it despite Millie’s polite refusal.

As Millie drives away, she’s convinced she’ll never set foot in that house again. She knows Nina will run a background check on her, and the truth will come out that she’s a fraud. Millie doesn’t even have a place to live. She’s been sleeping in her car because she’s broke, and the $20 from Nina goes straight to food. The next morning, two patrol officers wake her up and tell her she can’t sleep there. Millie lies, as she always does, explaining that she was calling her mom but got drowsy, so she pulled over for a nap. Suddenly, Millie gets a call from Nina offering her the job.

Upon returning to the Winchester residence in the afternoon, Millie encounters Enzo (Michele Morrone), a gardener who works for the Winchesters. She asks if he can open the gate for her since she doesn’t know the code. Enzo doesn’t respond. The gate swings open and Millie drives up to the house. When she glances back, Enzo has already disappeared.

Later, when Andrew (Brandon Sklenar) and their daughter Cecilia (Indiana Elle) return, Nina introduces Millie, explaining that she will be living with them to help with cooking and cleaning. Andrew seems caught off guard, clearly not expecting a new addition to the household. Nina reminds him that she had already told him about the new housemaid who would be staying in the attic guest room.

Andrew invites Millie to dinner, but she politely excuses herself to go upstairs and settle in. Nina follows her with some food, joking that Andrew always orders too much. Inside the room, Millie notices that the window above the bed won’t open and that the door is fitted with a deadbolt. When she questions this, Nina promises to talk to the handyman. Nina then surprises Millie with a new smartphone to replace her old one, noting that it has been linked to a credit card for household expenses.

The following morning, Nina throws a tantrum while frantically searching for her PTA speech notes. She claims they were on the kitchen counter the night before, but now they are gone. Nina accuses Millie of deliberately throwing away the notes she needs for the meeting tonight. Andrew tries to diffuse the situation by offering to drive Cecilia to school, giving Nina the rest of the day to work on her speech.

As Millie is about to leave the house on Saturday for her day off, Nina insists that she can’t spare her, pointing out that she missed a hair salon appointment because Millie threw away her notes. Millie begs for a few hours to attend an important meeting but refuses to say what it is. Andrew overhears their heated argument and intervenes, allowing Millie to go. It turns out Millie is on parole and must report to her officer, or she will be sent back to Bedford Prison to serve the remaining five years of her sentence. Millie is determined to hold onto her job while keeping her criminal record a secret from the Winchesters.

Millie gets a call from Nina telling her to pick up Cecilia from ballet class at 1:45 sharp. Nina hangs up abruptly before Millie can ask where it is. Millie eventually finds the studio, but Cecilia says she’s spending the night at Emma’s house. Emma’s mom Patrice (Ellen Tamaki) steps in, confirming they made these plans two weeks ago. Millie insists that Nina just called her to pick Cecilia up. Suspicious, Patrice calls Nina to verify. It dawns on Millie that Nina has been playing mind games with her, but she doesn’t push back. She keeps quiet because she desperately needs this job.

Returning home without Cecilia, Millie finds Nina talking to an elderly woman in the living room. Nina introduces her as Mrs. Winchester (Elizabeth Perkins), Andrew’s mother. Nina explains that Mrs. Winchester is downsizing and has brought over some family heirlooms, China dishes that Andrew loves. Mrs. Winchester glances at Millie and questions Nina about how she allows the help to dress like this. When Andrew returns home, he’s surprised to see his mother. Mrs. Winchester immediately comments on the fact that Andrew isn’t wearing a tie, revealing her controlling nature.

Unable to sleep, Millie goes downstairs to the upper living room that Nina said she could use and turns on Family Feud hosted by Richard Dawson. Moments later, Andrew unexpectedly appears, startling her. She tries to leave but Andrew insists she stay and watch with him. They make small talk about parents, and Millie learns that Nina’s parents died in a house fire when she was a kid. Nina was the sole survivor. Nobody knows how the fire started, which vaguely suggests Nina might have been responsible. Still, Andrew sympathizes with what Nina must have gone through since childhood. Suddenly Nina appears, visibly upset to find Andrew and Millie lying next to each other on the couch.

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@pradt

The HOUSEMAID 🗝️
Everyone has a secret.
—
A film by Paul Feig, starring Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Indiana Elle, Elizabeth Perkins, Sarah Cooper, Ellen Tamaki, Megan Ferguson, Amanda Joy Erickson, Alexandra Seal, and Michele Morrone.

Andrew quickly excuses himself and heads back to bed. Feeling awkward, Millie gets up to leave as well. But Nina stops her and fires her on the spot, ordering her to pack and leave first thing in the morning. Terrified, Millie begs for another chance, promising she’ll do anything. Nina reconsiders and agrees to let her stay, but only if Millie dresses more appropriately and keeps her distance from Andrew.

Directed by American filmmaker Paul Feig from a screenplay by Rebecca Sonnenshine based on Freida McFadden novel of the same name, The HOUSEMAID is a psychological thriller following a desperate woman with a criminal past who takes a live-in housemaid job with the wealthy family, only to uncover dark secrets.

Amanda Seyfried delivers an outstanding performance as Nina Winchester, a seemingly perfect housewife with a tragic and ambiguous past. Her unpredictable behavior and unhinged appearance make her character increasingly intriguing as we try to anticipate her next move. Seyfried is captivating to watch, particularly when she reveals that everything has been part of her grand scheme, a façade carefully crafted to fool everyone around her.

While Sydney Sweeney looks good in her role as Millie, I find her character less believable than she should be. Sweeney seems too intelligent to fall for the same manipulations repeatedly. I understand her character spent the last ten years in prison, but technology from a decade ago isn’t drastically different from today. Her narrative feels unconvincing and illogical.

Despite being desperate to keep the job, she never questions the unrealistic or suspiciously generous demands from her employer, even after multiple people warn her about the family. She doesn’t attempt to protect herself after being deliberately set up by her employer, who later denies ever giving those instructions.

The film struggles with pacing, especially in the third act after the revelation that takes us back through a series of events showing how Nina ended up with Andrew in the first place. The film never really explains why Andrew’s fiancée left or what ultimately drew Nina to him. The film attempts to surprise us with plot twists, but they feel unearned and unconvincing. The twists are simply there without proper buildup, and they’re not entirely unexpected anyway.

The HOUSEMAID was theatrically released in the United States on 19 December 2025.