After years of wringing laughs out of awkward misfits and combustible ensembles, Paul Feig is stepping into darker territory. His next film, “The Housemaid,” trades pratfalls for paranoia, reuniting Lionsgate with a pair of marquee names in Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried for a psychological thriller arriving in theaters December 19, 2025.
Adapted from Freida McFadden’s 2022 bestseller by screenwriter Rebecca Sonnenshine, the film centers on Millie Calloway (Sweeney), a young woman with a checkered past who takes a housekeeping job with a wealthy couple, only to discover the disturbing secrets lurking inside their home. Seyfried co-stars, joined by Brandon Sklenar and Michele Morrone.
For Feig—whose track record includes “Bridesmaids,” “Spy,” and television classics like “Freaks and Geeks” and “The Office”—the shift into psychological thriller is a notable pivot, though he did touch upon this genre in the “A Simple Favor” franchise, albeit with more of a dark comedic bent. The director produced the film with Laura Allen Fischer, Carly Kleinbart, and Todd Lieberman, while executive producers include Will Greenfield, McFadden, Seyfried, Sweeney, and Alexander Young.
With its prime holiday slot, a bestselling source novel, and two of the most bankable actors of the moment, “The Housemaid” positions itself as a sharp piece of counterprogramming in the year-end marketplace.
Synopsis:
THE HOUSEMAID is a wildly entertaining thriller starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, based on the best-selling book. From director Paul Feig, the film plunges audiences into a twisted world where perfection is an illusion, and nothing is as it seems. Trying to escape her past, Millie (Sweeney) accepts a job as a live-in housemaid for the wealthy Nina (Seyfried) and Andrew Winchester (Brandon Sklenar). But what begins as a dream job quickly unravels into something far more dangerous — a sexy, seductive game of secrets, scandal, and power. Behind the Winchesters’ closed doors lies a world of shocking twists that will leave you guessing until the very end.
Lionsgate will release “The Housemaid” in theaters on December 19. Watch the new trailer below.
