Director Paul Feig revealed that he initially doubted Taylor Swift would approve her song for the thriller The Housemaid, but she did after viewing the film. The movie, an adaptation of Freida McFadden's novel, features several changes from the book, including more violent scenes. Starring Sydney Sweeney and Amanda Seyfried, it explores dark family secrets and is now in theaters.
Paul Feig, director of the thriller The Housemaid, shared insights into the film's soundtrack during its red carpet premiere on Monday. He had envisioned using Taylor Swift's 2017 track "I Did Something Bad" from her Reputation album to underscore the movie's shocking conclusion. "Well, that’s the thing; you want to put a Taylor song in your movie, but she and her company have to approve it," Feig told Deadline. He added, "So, we were tempting with it, and we were like, ‘It’s so perfect, but she’s never gonna clear this.' Then we showed she and her people the movie, and she approved it. So, I guess she likes it. Thank you Taylor!"
The soundtrack also includes Lana Del Rey’s “Cinnamon Girl,” Renée Rapp’s “Why Is She Still Here?,” Kelly Clarkson’s “Since U Been Gone,” and Linda Ronstadt’s “Tumbling Dice” and “Blue Bayou.” Based on Freida McFadden’s 2022 novel, The Housemaid stars Sydney Sweeney as Millie, a housekeeper with a dark past who joins the seemingly perfect Winchester family, played by Amanda Seyfried as Nina and Brandon Sklenar as Andrew. The story unfolds from dual perspectives, revealing Andrew's abusive nature.
The film adaptation makes notable changes from the book. In Andrew's torture of Millie, the movie opts for violence: he forces her to slice 21 cuts into her stomach with a broken plate piece, unlike the book's requirement to balance books on her stomach. Millie's retaliation is similarly intensified; she slits his throat and locks him in the attic, demanding he pull out a front tooth, contrasting the book's taunting with books on his groin and pliers for teeth. Andrew's death shifts too: in the film, after attacking, Millie shoves him down a spiral staircase, while the book has him starve. Enzo, the groundskeeper portrayed by Michele Morrone, plays a minor role in the movie compared to his significant involvement in the book, where he aids Nina's escape and alerts her to Millie's danger.
The ending retains a flash-forward: one year later, Millie interviews for a new position recommended by Nina, hinting at confronting another abuser. A police interrogation differs slightly, with a policewoman in the film revealing her sister's past with Andrew, versus a policeman's daughter in the book. Both versions conclude that Andrew's death was accidental.
