The Housemaid Movie 2026 Review

French release date: December 24, 2025

(Yes, they dropped a psychological thriller on Christmas Eve. Bold move, France...)

Synopsis

Looking for a fresh start, Millie takes a live-in housemaid job with Nina and Andrew Winchester, a wealthy couple as mysterious as they are polished. What seems like the perfect gig quickly spirals into a dangerous game of seduction, secrets, and manipulation. Behind the closed doors of the Winchester mansion lies a world of deception and shocking revelations… A whirlwind of suspense and scandal that'll keep you on the edge of your seat till the very last second.

Paul Feig

Having read Freida McFadden’s book a few months back, I found the big-screen adaptation of The Housemaid Movie 2026 to be rather bland, but it does stick close enough to the novel’s plot.

Sure, there were some necessary cuts (thankfully), or else this thing would’ve clocked in at 3½ hours instead of 2h10… which would’ve been fatal for my attention span.

The setup drags a bit, yeah, but it’s not pointless. It actually serves to flesh out the characters and their psyches. Let’s be real: even at over two hours, the movie never gets too boring to sit through.

And things pick up fast once the mid-film twist hits completely flipping the stakes and setting off a chain reaction of twists that carries us to the end.

Unfortunately, Millie (the heroine of both book and film!) figures out her employer’s mental instability way too quickly compared to the novel. I get why the director made that call for pacing’s sake, but still, it undercuts some of the slow-burn tension.

Our young housemaid’s patience gets tested real fast. And at one point, when she finds comfort in the arms of the family patriarch… yep, we veer straight into soft-core romance territory for swooning teens. (And by « soft-core, » I mean very soft, I’m warning you.)

Too bad the characters feel so cartoonish, the situations so far-fetched, and the gore because yes, this thing gets bloody feels both excessive and kinda pointless. Some scenes straight-up crossed into « uncomfortable » for me.

The book has gore too, but it’s all in the prose your imagination does the heavy lifting. Here? We get the full visual treatment, leaving little to the imagination and raising serious questions about everyone’s mental health.

As for the script: it’s a psychological thriller with a sultry vibe and a pace just brisk enough to keep the tension building without overdoing it. Except… that’s kinda where it stumbles. And honestly, fans of McFadden’s book might be disappointed to hear this, but the novel’s plot wasn’t exactly subtle either. Just my two cents!

(That said, the book remains, as I wrote in a previous piece, a damn fine beach read.)

Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried make a solid duo, and overall, the cast carries the film decently, even if the acting occasionally veers into melodrama.

Oh, and the plot twist I didn’t see coming? The box office. Released quietly on December 24th (right between the foie gras and the New Year’s resolutions), The Housemaid Movie 2026 exploded in French theaters starting January 5th, surpassing even Avatar in ticket sales during its first full week. Turns out, after holiday overload, the French public craved a little domestic chaos more than blue aliens on Pandora. Who knew?

Bottom line? The movie doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it gets the job done. It does a decent job explaining why the novel blew up: a hooky premise, messed-up dynamics, and a creeping sense of unease that never quite lets go.

Oh, and the score? Actually a win. Never overbearing, but it steadily ratchets up the tension from start to finish.

Final verdict: It’s entertaining, but no, it won’t be the psychological thriller of the year. It’ll probably appeal across generations. It’s got a faint feminist streak and packs more violence than I expected… but like the book, it’s easy to watch without turning your brain on too hard.

I’ll let you decide whether it’s worth your time. (My rating: 2.5 / 5)

The film is based on Freida McFadden’s debut novel, the one that kicked off her rise to bestseller status and launched The Housemaid saga. No surprise, this movie’s just the beginning of a franchise. Feels very much of the moment.

Left the theater to a roughly 80/20 split: 80% satisfied, 20% disappointed. Might help you decide. One weird note: releasing it on December 24th? Odd holiday pick. There are better ways to spend Christmas Eve. (Though apparently, not for post-holiday French audiences.)

Written by M.C.D., January 16, 2026, for Infos Spectacles et Loisirs, Paris, France
P.S. For the fans: a sequel’s already greenlit. Just found out today. Called it this series was coming. According to the information that has been given, this would be based on Freida McFadden’s second book, The Secret of the Housemaid.