Behind-the-scenes with Seyfried and director Paul Feig reveals how they kept Sydney Sweeney on her toes while crafting one of cinema’s most twisted and entertaining characters.
Amanda Seyfried fully embraced her role as Nina in The Housemaid, delivering a performance that is as unpredictable as it is captivating. Based on Freida McFadden’s novel of the same name, the film sees Nina, a wealthy wife and mother, hiring Millie (Sydney Sweeney) as a live-in housemaid. What begins as a dream opportunity quickly spirals into a tense, psychological thriller, as Nina’s behavior appears increasingly erratic — or as Seyfried puts it, “bats—.”
Yet, as audiences eventually learn, Nina’s eccentricity is a carefully constructed act. Millie’s true danger comes not from Nina, but from her sadistic husband Andrew (Brandon Sklenar). Aware of Millie’s past — having killed a man who threatened one of her classmates — Nina strategically hires her with the hope that she will confront Andrew, allowing Nina and her daughter to escape his abuse.
“The sticking point for me in the beginning,” Seyfried explains, “was realizing Nina has a lot going on — more than we’re supposed to know at first. I had to make her realistic while hiding layers of her intentions.” Seyfried approached Nina as a character who “believes what she believes in the moment, even if it conflicts with the previous scene,” allowing the layered performance to feel natural.
Her approach paid off in creating tension and unexpected humor. “It really creates space for laughter in the first half of the movie,” Seyfried says, praising director Paul Feig’s ability to utilize the dynamic between her and Sweeney. The unpredictability of Nina allowed for improvisation and creative freedom on set, keeping Sweeney on her toes.
“It was like a ton of anything goes,” Seyfried recalls. “Paul and I would play around as much as we wanted. Every new note or idea was a surprise for Syd, because Nina is so nuts and so unpredictable.”
Sweeney, for her part, called working alongside Seyfried “a dream.” Normally the one portraying the unhinged character, she appreciated watching Millie learn and react alongside the audience. “Getting to see her play such an unhinged character was such a treat,” Sweeney said. “She completely killed it and blew me away.”
Through a mix of calculated chaos, improvisation, and deep understanding of Nina’s psychology, Seyfried created a character that keeps audiences guessing until the final act. With Michele Morrone, Elizabeth Perkins, Indiana Elle, and more rounding out the cast, The Housemaid continues to thrill viewers in theaters.
The film showcases not only the suspenseful twists of its narrative but also the playful, collaborative energy between Seyfried and Feig that brought one of the most delightfully unpredictable characters of the year to life.
