Sydney Sweeney breaks her box-office curse with steamy R-rated thriller The Housemaid

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Sydney Sweeney has finally flipped the script after a string of brutal box-office misfires. 

The 28-year-old actress is enjoying success again with her new film, The Housemaid. It earned a strong $19 to $20 million in the United States and Canada during its opening weekend.

Paul Feig’s new psychological thriller had a surprisingly strong opening weekend, even though it was competing with the popular new Avatar movie.

The success of ‘The Housemaid’ is a significant comeback for director Sweeney, whose previous films – ‘Americana,’ ‘Eden,’ and ‘Christy’ – didn’t resonate with viewers.

Movie Web reports that those three movies together didn’t make as much money overall as The Housemaid earned in just its first few days in cinemas.

The psychological thriller features Sweeney as Millie, a young woman with a difficult past who starts working as a live-in housekeeper for a rich couple who appear to have ideal lives – played by Amanda Seyfried and Brandon Sklenar.

What starts as a hopeful new beginning soon descends into a twisted cycle of control, intense attraction, lies, and explicit sexual energy—and viewers seem to be captivated by the disturbing journey.

When Entertainment Weekly asked if there might be a follow-up, Sweeney didn’t give a clear yes or no answer.

“We’ll just have to wait and see,” said Sweeney, who portrays Millie Calloway in the popular movie, also starring Elizabeth Perkins, Michele Morrone, and Indiana Elle.

The actress, who has been nominated for an Emmy, hinted that the movie was inspired by Freida McFadden’s 2022 book.

Sweeney expressed hope that viewers would enjoy the movie adaptations as much as the original books, and that they could continue to build on that shared enthusiasm with future films.

Seyfried mentioned that a sequel is possible, saying that if the first film isn’t successful, they’ll likely stop there. However, if it does perform well, a full franchise is definitely on the table.

Seyfried expressed interest in appearing in a sequel if producers decide to make one, saying she thoroughly enjoyed working on the film with director Paul Feig, known for comedies like Bridesmaids, The Heat, and A Simple Favor.

Oh my gosh, when I heard Amanda Seyfried talk about playing Nina in Black Swan, she said it was like… therapy for her! Can you believe it? It just makes so much sense, you know? Like, she really became Nina, and working through all of that helped her in a way. It’s amazing to think about, honestly. It wasn’t just acting for her, it was something deeper!

The actress, age 40, explained that she drew on a personal fear for her role. She finds it difficult being around people who are inconsistent – sometimes warm and engaging, other times distant and cold – whether it’s at work or in social situations.

This captures Nina’s personality when you first encounter her. It was surprisingly enjoyable and insightful to explore my biggest fears, and I aimed to highlight the most frightening aspects of those feelings in my portrayal.

Sweeney’s success at the box office happened alongside the strong opening of Avatar: Fire and Ash, which earned $88 million in North America over the weekend.

Okay, so the opening weekend numbers weren’t quite as insane as the last one, I’ll admit. But honestly? It still crushed everything else! It’s like, yeah, maybe it wasn’t a record-breaker this time, but it completely dominated the box office, and that’s all that matters to me! It’s just…massive. A true behemoth, as it should be!

The animated biblical musical David from Angel Studios took a surprising second place at the box office. SpongeBob SquarePants: Saving Vision from Paramount and Zootopia 2 from Disney completed the top five films.

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2025-12-22 04:35