It starts like every other teen movie you’ve ever seen. There is the awkward kid, Cole, who is too old to have a sitter but too scared to be alone. There is the impossibly cool older girl, Bee, who actually listens to him. They talk about Star Trek. They dance. It feels safe. Then the blood starts spraying, and suddenly, the Netflix movie The Babysitter turns into a neon-soaked nightmare that refuses to slow down. McG—the director usually known for high-octane action like Charlie's Angels—somehow found the perfect sweet spot between a John Hughes coming-of-age story and a 1980s slasher. It shouldn't work. It really shouldn't. But honestly, it’s one of the most rewatchable things on the platform.
Most people clicked on it because of Samara Weaving. She’s incredible. She has this magnetic, effortless screen presence that makes you forget she’s technically the villain. But the movie's secret weapon is how it flips the "final boy" trope on its head. Usually, in these movies, the kid is a victim. Here, Cole has to grow up in a single, traumatic night while being hunted by a cult of archetypes: the jock, the mean girl, the goth, and the "token" crazy guy.
The Weird Genius of the Netflix Movie The Babysitter
What makes this movie different? Tone. Tone is the hardest thing to nail in horror. If you're too funny, the stakes vanish. If you're too scary, the jokes feel tacky. The Netflix movie The Babysitter walks that tightrope by leaning into the absurdity. Look at the kills. They are ridiculous. We’re talking "trophy through the skull" ridiculous. Yet, because Judah Lewis plays Cole with such genuine, wide-eyed terror, you actually care if he makes it to morning.
Brian Duffield wrote the script, and it actually sat on the "Black List" (the industry list of the best unproduced scripts) for a while before Netflix snatched it up. You can tell. The dialogue isn't that generic "movie teen" talk where everyone sounds like a 40-year-old screenwriter trying to be hip. It’s snappy. It’s weird. When Robbie Amell’s character, Max, spends half the movie shirtless and screaming encouragement at the kid he’s trying to murder, it’s hilarious. It’s also kinda sweet? In a "I’m going to kill you but I’m proud of your personal growth" sort of way.
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Breaking Down the Cult Members
- Bee (Samara Weaving): The leader. She’s the heart of the film. Without her charisma, the whole thing falls apart. You almost want to join her cult. Almost.
- Max (Robbie Amell): The shirtless jock. He represents the weirdly masculine bond Cole never had. His death is one of the most memorable moments in the film because of how much he cheers Cole on right before the end.
- Allison (Bella Thorne): The stereotypical cheerleader who takes a bullet to the boob. It sounds low-brow, and it is, but Thorne leans into the "clueless mean girl" vibe so well it works.
- Sonya (Hana Mae Lee): The goth. Dark, quiet, and surprisingly lethal with a pair of scissors.
- John (Andrew Bachelor): The guy who can't stop talking. He provides the meta-commentary that keeps the movie grounded in its own ridiculousness.
The cinematography is loud. Primary colors—reds, blues, yellows—pop off the screen. It doesn’t look like a horror movie; it looks like a comic book. That was a deliberate choice by McG and cinematographer Shane Hurlbut. They wanted it to feel like a fever dream. If the movie looked "gritty," the humor would feel mean-spirited. Because it looks like candy, the violence feels like a ride.
Why the Critics Were Wrong (And Why It Ranks)
When it first dropped in 2017, some critics hated it. They called it shallow. They said it was too violent for kids but too childish for adults. They missed the point. The Netflix movie The Babysitter is a celebration of the "losing your innocence" trope. It’s about that moment when you realize the adults you look up to are actually flawed, or in this case, literal devil worshippers.
It’s also surprisingly tight. 85 minutes. That’s it. In an era where every blockbuster is three hours long, a movie that gets in, kills five people, and gets out before the pizza gets cold is a blessing. It understands its own limitations. It’s not trying to be Hereditary. It’s trying to be the movie you watch with your friends on a Friday night while yelling at the TV.
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The Success of Samara Weaving
We have to talk about Samara. Before this, she was mostly known for Australian soaps and small roles. This movie made her a "Scream Queen." It led directly to Ready or Not, which is another fantastic horror-comedy. She has this ability to look terrifying while smiling, a skill she uses to full effect during the ritual scene. When she looks at Cole and says, "I'm not a bad person, Cole. I'm just a person who wants things," it’s chilling because you almost believe her.
The film's impact on Netflix's original content strategy can't be understated. It showed that "mid-budget" horror could drive massive engagement. It wasn't a prestige film, but it was a "sticking" film—one that stayed in the Top 10 for weeks. This paved the way for the sequel, The Babysitter: Killer Queen, and other stylized horror like Fear Street.
Practical Takeaways for Fans of the Genre
If you’ve watched the Netflix movie The Babysitter and you’re looking for why it sticks in your brain, or if you’re a filmmaker trying to replicate it, here is what actually worked:
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- The "Kill Your Darlings" Mentality: The movie isn't afraid to dispose of its most interesting characters quickly. This keeps the audience on edge. You never know who is actually safe.
- Subverting Expectations: Usually, the babysitter is the one being hunted. Flipping the script makes the audience re-evaluate every scene from the first twenty minutes.
- Visual Language: Use of on-screen text and stylized title cards helps bridge the gap between "movie" and "experience." It makes the film feel interactive.
- The Emotional Core: At the end of the day, it's about a kid who learns to stand up for himself. Without that heart, the blood is just corn syrup.
The ending is iconic. Cole driving the car into the house? Pure cinema. It’s the ultimate "I’m done with your crap" moment. It’s cathartic. You’ve spent an hour watching this kid get bullied, not just by the cult, but by life. Seeing him literally crash through the barriers of his childhood is a metaphor that isn't subtle, but man, is it effective.
What to Watch Next
If you loved this, you shouldn't just stop there. Check out Ready or Not for more Samara Weaving excellence. Watch Happy Death Day if you like the "slasher with a sense of humor" vibe. And obviously, watch the sequel, Killer Queen, though be warned: it leans much harder into the "wacky" and loses some of the original's tension.
The Netflix movie The Babysitter remains a high-water mark for the streamer’s early foray into original films. It’s bold, it’s bloody, and it’s remarkably sincere about the pains of growing up. It reminds us that sometimes, the monsters under the bed aren't as scary as the person putting you to sleep.
To get the most out of your next viewing, pay attention to the background details in Bee's room during the first act. The foreshadowing is everywhere, from the books on the shelf to the way she handles a knife while making a sandwich. It’s a masterclass in "show, don't tell" that rewards repeat viewers. Once you see the signs, you can’t unsee them, making the first thirty minutes an entirely different experience. Look for the occult symbols hidden in plain sight; they're the breadcrumbs leading straight to the basement.