Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried don’t see eye-to-eye in ‘The Housemaid.’ (Photo: Daniel McFadden/Lionsgate)
Sydney Sweeney plays a down-and-out young woman who gets a shot at redemption in “The Housemaid,” an upcoming psychological thriller that gives new meaning to the term “familial dysfunction.”
The film, slated for release during the Christmas holiday season, Dec. 19, is no “It’s a Wonderful Life.”
But hey, this is 2025 and American families are far removed from the Baileys of Frank Capra’s 1946 Christmas classic.
The Housemaid, not your father’s Christmas family.
Instead, we get the Winchesters, a well-to-do surburban family living in a Long Island, NY, mansion with some very dark secrets.
“It’s salacious; it’s all the things you want in a good story,” says Seyfried in a movie featurette. (See below)
Wife, Nina (Amanda Seyfried), husband Andrew (Brandon Sklenar) and jaded pre-teen daughter Cecelia (Indiana Elle) welcome Millie Calloway (Sweeney) into their home… well, sort of.
Hiring Millie as a live-in maid is Nina’s idea. When she’ introduced to the family, Andrew seems skeptical and surprised. Cecelia’s disdainful stare almost burns a hole through her. But, of course, they go along.
Millie sees the job as a chance to restore some stability in her life. She has a criminal past, was fired from her job and is sleeping in her car when Nina hires her.
She moves into an attic bedroom, intent on being as low key as possible, but she’s soon drawn into the Winchester’s dysfunctional lives.
As the film progresses, she’s discovers the family’s dark secrets and soon finds herself caught in the middle of their nighmare.
“I was drawn to Millie because she’s not afraid to stand up for what she believes in,” says Sweeney.
The film is based on a 2022 novel by the same name that catapulted writer Freida McFadden into the ranks of best selling authors. The book sold more than two million copies and stayed on Amazon’s best-seller list for 83 weeks.
Sweeney, 28, may be the fastest rising actress in Hollywood. She’s appeared in 34 films since 2010 and made a dozen or more television appearances, mostly in supporting roles.
But she graduated to lead roles in 2019’s “Euphoria” and 2021’s “The White Lotus,” both streamers on HBO, and in the 2023 film “Reality” about U.S. Air Force veteran Reality Winner.
Comparisions with Seyfried, 39, in the film are inevitable, and, well, Sidney just seems a little stiff by comparison.
But she’s in good company with Seyfried, a Primetime Emmy Award, Golden Globe Award, and Oscar-nominated actress, who takes some of the focus off Sweeney.
“What kind of monsters are we!” says Nina jocularly.
Definitely the kind that keep you up at night. Check out the videos below.