The new thriller The Housemaid, starring Amanda Seyfried and Sydney Sweeney, delivers a story where nothing is what it seems. For much of the movie, you watch housewife Nina Winchester(Amanda Seyfried) make life miserable for her new housemaid, Millie Calloway(Sydney Sweeney). Nina appears unstable, jealous, and cruel. Meanwhile, her husband, Andrew, seems like the perfect, charming man caught in a difficult marriage. But a massive twist halfway through the film flips this entire story on its head. The shocking reveal changes the meaning of every event that came before, exposing Nina’s true, desperate motivation for hiring Millie. She did not want a cleaner; she needed a specific kind of replacement.
The Twisted Truth Behind Nina and Andrew’s Marriage
The movie’s first act is a masterclass in misdirection. Nina comes across as a volatile, gaslighting employer. She screams at Millie over small mistakes, sends her on confusing errands, and appears deeply paranoid. Millie, a former inmate desperate to stay out of prison, endures it while finding solace in Andrew’s calm and kind demeanor. The local gossip and a former nanny confirm the worst: Nina was once institutionalized after an incident where she allegedly tried to drown her young daughter, Cecelia. Andrew, everyone says, is a saint for staying with her.
This all changes when Nina is finally kicked out of her own home after Andrew discovers her affair with Millie. The perspective shifts, and Nina’s story is revealed in flashbacks. Her marriage to Andrew began as a fairytale but quickly became a nightmare of control and psychological torture.
Andrew locked her in the attic for days at a time for minor offenses like failing to touch up her hair roots. To earn her freedom, he would force her to complete degrading tasks, such as plucking 100 hairs from her head, follicle and all.
Worst of all, Andrew was the mastermind behind the incident that labeled Nina as insane. He drugged her, placed Cecelia in a running bathtub, and called the authorities, making it look like a murder-suicide attempt. Nina, understanding the system was stacked against her, confessed to a crime she didn’t commit. She did this solely to be released from the psychiatric facility and return home to her daughter. Trapped in a gilded cage with a man who had destroyed her reputation, Nina realized she could not simply leave. If she tried, Andrew would use his public image as the perfect husband to take Cece away forever. Her only way out was to make him leave her.
Why Millie Was the Perfect Target for Nina’s Plan
Nina’s plan was cold, calculated, and required a very specific type of person. She didn’t just need a pretty young woman to catch Andrew’s roving eye—though that was part of it. She needed someone who wouldn’t break under pressure and, ultimately, could fight back against a monster. Nina discovered Millie was exactly that person.
Millie’s past crime was not one of malice but of violent defense. As a teenager at boarding school, she walked in on a boy sexually assaulting her roommate. Millie attacked him and accidentally killed him. Despite trying to stop a crime, no one believed her story—not the school, the police, or even her own parents. The boy’s wealth and good looks protected him in death, while Millie was branded a murderer and sent to prison for ten years. Nina researched this case thoroughly. She saw two crucial qualities in Millie: a desperate need for a job to maintain her parole, and a proven capacity for lethal violence when confronted with a predator.
Nina’s entire cruel performance was an act designed to push Andrew and Millie together. By being the “crazy wife,” she made Millie seem like a victim in need of saving. She made Andrew look like a heroic rescuer, all while setting the stage for him to transfer his obsessive control to a new target. As director Paul Feig explained, the film spends an hour making the audience “root for everything they should not be rooting for,” before revealing the terrifying truth.
The Brutal Climax and a New Purpose for Millie
The plan culminates when Andrew finally shows Millie his true nature. After she breaks a piece of heirloom china, he locks her in the attic—Nina’s old prison—and delivers a sick punishment. He orders her to carve 21 deep cuts into her own stomach, one for each shattered piece of the plate. Millie, drawing on her brutal past, submits to the torture only to turn the tables. She attacks Andrew, locks him in the attic, and forces him to pull out his own front tooth with a pair of pliers, ruining the perfect smile he used to manipulate women.
Nina, guilt-ridden, returns to free Millie but accidentally releases Andrew instead. In a final confrontation on the mansion’s spiral staircase, Andrew tries to sweet-talk his way back into control. Nina delivers a blistering rebuttal.
“You have a wife who f***ing hates you,” Nina tells him. “I almost feel sorry for you.”
Andrew lunges, and Millie pushes him over the banister, sending him falling to his death. The women quickly concoct a story about a tragic accident while changing a lightbulb. When police investigate, a female officer reveals her sister was once engaged to Andrew and was deeply traumatized by him. Understanding the kind of man he was, she chooses to accept the accident story and close the case.
In the aftermath, Nina inherits Andrew’s wealth and gives Millie $100,000 to start a new life. But the film’s final scene shows Millie isn’t done. She interviews for another housemaid position with a woman who reveals Nina recommended her. The new employer subtly shows Millie bruises on her wrist and speaks ominously about her husband. Without hesitation, Millie accepts the job. She understands the real assignment: not cleaning, but liberation. She has been recruited into a silent network, using her unique experience to help other women trapped by powerful, abusive men.
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The Housemaid is now playing in theaters. The film is based on the bestselling novel by Freida McFadden and directed by Paul Feig.
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