The Housemaid (dir. Paul Feig)
By: Adam Freed
As one of the last theatrical releases of 2025, Paul Feig’s The Housemaid earns the dubious distinction as the most fun bad movie of the year. The year has been filled by so many films that can accurately be categorized as greater than the sum of their parts, and yet The Housemaid somehow presents itself akin to 2+2=3. Feig’s (Spy, A Simple Favor) tepid thriller, based on the novel of the same name by Freida McFadden, offers three noteworthy performances from the film’s marquee stars, the most compelling of which comes from Amanda Seyfried (Les Misérables, Mama Mia). Seyfried’s embodiment of Nina Winchester, a wealthy stay-at-home socialite in search of live-in cleaning help, gets off to a rocky start in the film’s opening 20 minutes, but once audiences become privy to the story’s full arc, a greater appreciation for the gifted actress is sure to surface considering the elevation Seyfried manages of the movie’s less than stellar script. The breakout star of the film is unquestionably Brandon Sklenar (Drop, It Ends with With Us) who proves he is armed with far more than a superhero physique and a megawatt smile. Sklenar plays Andrew Winchester with a rugged sensuality that proves gravitational, and vital to audiences following the somewhat predictable trail of breadcrumbs set out by the film. Nobody needs The Housemaid to succeed more than the final piece to the film’s performance triumvirate, Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria, Christy), who is perhaps 2025’s biggest box office pariah after the dual deaths of her films Christy (2025) and Echo Valley (2025). The once promising starlet acquits herself serviceably under Feig’s direction, by leaning into her ability to play for empathy, despite her character’s checkered background.
The Housemaid frames its simple premise: a recent parolee lies on her résumé in order to gain employment with the Winchester family in order to gain both permanent residence and a steady income as a means to satisfy the terms of her probation. For those willing to choke down wooden dialogue and survive a whirlwind of early exposition, there is a discernible settling of the film as it mercifully finds its way into its second, and far more successful act. The screen chemistry between Seyfried, Sweeney and Sklenar is unquestionable and for those open to a little on-screen heat in time for the holidays, The Housemaid produces what is one of the more memorable sex scenes year to date. But, like the on-screen lust it portrays, there is little emotion behind the scene’s physical passion, a distinction likely to mean very little to those who pay to see the adaptation of the popular novel.
Ultimately, despite its enjoyable willingness to play coy and campy, The Housemaid has very little to offer by way of surprise. Feig’s thriller is nowhere near as slick or crafty as it fashions itself to be. For fans of the genre, The Housemaid watches like a poor man’s Gone Girl (2014), a fact that comes across as more of an insult to David Fincher than it does a compliment to Paul Feig. Despite all of its shortcomings, The Housemaid is still likely to entertain, so long as audiences are willing to disengage their brains and go along for the mildly executed ride.
Target Score 4/10 - Paul Feig has injected his adaptation of Freida McFadden’s novel The Housemaid with just enough intrigue and sex appeal to lure audiences out of hibernation this holiday season.