- - Let's unpack that shocking 'Housemaid' twist – and huge book changes

Patrick Ryan, USA TODAYDecember 21, 2025 at 1:00 AM

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Spoiler alert! The following post contains major details about the ending of “The Housemaid” (in theaters now). Stop reading now if you haven’t seen it and don’t want to know.

In “The Housemaid,” working for Amanda Seyfried is a bit like pulling teeth.

The beloved “Mamma Mia!” star plays boss-from-hell Nina Winchester in the psychological thriller, berating and gaslighting her family’s new live-in housekeeper: the beautiful yet enigmatic Millie Calloway (Sydney Sweeney). Her husband, Andrew (Brandon Sklenar), eventually falls for Millie and kicks out Nina, who leaves the house in a jealous rage.

But as fans of Freida McFadden’s 2022 novel will know, that was all according to Nina’s plan. In the second half of the book and movie, we discover that Nina was mercilessly tortured by Andrew, who would lock her in the attic for days on end, force her to pull out her hair, and threaten to take away their young daughter, Cecilia (Indiana Elle), if Nina didn’t obey him.

Millie (Sydney Sweeney, left) comes to realize that Nina (Amanda Seyfried) is not as deranged as she initially appears.

And so, Nina devised an escape plan for her and Cecilia by hiring Millie, knowing full well that Andrew couldn’t resist the attractive young housemaid – particularly as Nina's own behavior became increasingly erratic and disturbing.

She also knew that Millie had been arrested for murder years earlier, after walking in on a man assaulting her friend. In that sense, Nina trusted Millie would be able to defend herself from Andrew and eventually kill him, should he ever become abusive toward her.

Review: Amanda Seyfried is a fab force of nature in 'The Housemaid'

What are the biggest ‘Housemaid’ changes from the book?

Andrew (Brandon Sklenar) hides his devious nature behind an affable smile.

Sure enough, Andrew starts to play his sadistic mind games with Millie, who eventually manages to fight back and lock him upstairs.

This is where the movie diverges from the book: In McFadden’s novel, Millie slides pliers under the attic door and tells Andrew that she’ll let him out if he rips out one of his teeth. Nina returns to the house days later, only to find Andrew’s mangled, bruised corpse in the attic with several teeth missing. And at Andrew’s funeral, his mom reveals that she once pulled out his baby teeth as punishment.

How does the ‘Housemaid’ movie end?

Nina also plays a more active role in the film’s finale than on the page, giving the character more agency. In the movie, Andrew is still alive when Nina returns to the house to save Millie. Andrew begs Nina to take him back, but instead, she pushes him over a stairwell railing and he plunges to his death. Nina frames Andrew’s demise as an accident, insisting that he was trying to change a lightbulb in the foyer when he lost his balance.

Will there be ‘The Housemaid 2’?

The movie ends on a cliffhanger, as Millie gets hired by another wealthy woman, who says that Millie came highly recommended by Nina. The woman suggests that she, too, is being abused by her husband, and asks if Millie can help her before the end credits roll.

McFadden published a 2023 sequel novel, “The Housemaid’s Secret,” which follows a similarly twisty mystery about Millie defending a new employer trapped in a bad marriage.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'The Housemaid' movie makes a major change from the book's ending

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