Slasher movies are back. Well, they never really left, but the way we watch them has changed so much since the days of grainy VHS tapes and $5 Tuesday matinees. When Netflix dropped There’s Someone in Your House back in 2021, the buzz was huge. You had the producers of Stranger Things and Arrival teaming up with director Patrick Brice. It felt like a guaranteed win. It was based on Stephanie Perkins’ bestselling YA novel, a book that managed to be both a romance and a grizzly thriller.
But then people actually watched it.
The reaction was… mixed, to put it lightly. Some viewers loved the neon-soaked aesthetic and the "Gen Z" social commentary. Others felt it was a massive departure from the source material that lost its soul in translation. Honestly, if you're looking for a straight adaptation of Perkins’ book, you’re going to be disappointed. The movie takes the "someone is in your house" trope and tries to turn it into something more "elevated," which is a word horror fans have learned to view with a healthy dose of skepticism lately.
The Problem with the Mask
In the book, the killer doesn't wear a 3D-printed mask of your own face. That was a big change for the film. In the movie version of There’s Someone in Your House, the killer wears a literal mask of the victim’s face to "expose" them. It’s a gimmick. A cool-looking gimmick? Sure. But it changes the entire vibe of the story.
Instead of a mystery about a person lurking in the shadows, it becomes a literal metaphor for our "two-faced" society. The killer targets students at Osborne High who have secrets. A closeted racist, a kid who hazes his friends—basically, people whose public persona doesn't match their private reality.
Where the Movie Strays from the Book
If you haven't read the novel, the differences are jarring once you look them up. Stephanie Perkins wrote a story that felt deeply personal about Makani Young, a girl who moved from Hawaii to Nebraska to escape a dark past. In the film, played by Sydney Park, Makani is still the lead, but the pacing feels rushed. We lose a lot of that slow-burn tension that made the book work.
The kills in the movie are undeniably creative. The opening scene with the football player, Jackson? Gory. Intense. It sets a high bar. But as the film progresses, the motive starts to feel a bit thin. Why is this kid doing this? The "why" is always the hardest part of a slasher movie to get right. If it’s too logical, it’s not scary. If it’s too random, it’s frustrating. There’s Someone in Your House lands somewhere in the middle, and for a lot of horror purists, that's the "dead zone."
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Why Nebraska? The Setting Matters
There is something inherently creepy about cornfields. It worked for Children of the Corn, and it works here. The isolation of a small town in Nebraska provides the perfect backdrop for a "someone in your house" scenario. When the nearest neighbor is a mile away, a locked door doesn't feel like much protection.
Director Patrick Brice, who did the excellent Creep and Creep 2, knows how to handle awkward, claustrophobic tension. He uses the wide-open spaces of the Midwest to make the interiors of the houses feel even smaller. You’ve got these kids living in big, empty homes while their parents are away, and the cinematography really leans into that vulnerability.
The color palette is gorgeous, too. It’s got that modern, saturated look—lots of purples and deep oranges. It doesn't look like a grimy 70s slasher. It looks like a high-end music video, which fits the Netflix "YA" brand perfectly. But does style outweigh substance?
The "Secrets" Theme: A Double-Edged Sword
We live in a call-out culture. That’s just a fact of 2026. There’s Someone in Your House tries to bake that into its DNA. The killer is basically a physical manifestation of a Twitter thread. They find your "problematic" past and force you to face it before they kill you.
On one hand, it’s a clever update to the genre. In the 80s, the "sin" was usually having sex or doing drugs. In this movie, the "sin" is hypocrisy.
However, it feels a bit preachy at times. The movie wants to have its cake and eat it too—it wants to be a fun, bloody slasher, but it also wants to deliver a sermon on social ethics. When the killer finally reveals their motive, it feels a bit like a lecture.
- The Heroine: Makani is a great protagonist because she’s flawed. She’s not a "final girl" because she’s perfect; she’s a final girl because she’s surviving her own guilt.
- The Romance: The relationship between Makani and Ollie (played by Théodore Pellerin) is actually one of the stronger points. It feels genuine, unlike many forced horror movie romances.
- The Gore: It’s surprisingly brutal. Netflix didn't hold back on the practical effects, which slasher fans will appreciate.
Is It Actually Scary?
Fear is subjective. What scares one person might just make another roll their eyes. The title There’s Someone in Your House taps into a very primal fear: the invasion of the sanctuary. Your home is where you’re supposed to be safe.
The film is more of a "thriller" than a pure "horror" movie. There aren't many jump scares that will make you hit the ceiling. Instead, it relies on the dread of knowing that the person next to you might know your darkest secret—and might be willing to kill you for it.
It’s less Halloween and more Scream for the TikTok generation. And that’s okay! Every generation needs its own version of the slasher. But compared to something like Talk to Me or Barbarian, it feels a little safe. It follows the Netflix "template" a bit too closely, which can make the ending feel predictable even if you haven't read the book.
The Ending Explained (Sort Of)
Without spoiling the exact identity for those who haven't pressed play yet, the ending shifts the focus from a personal vendetta to a broader critique of privilege. It’s a bold choice. It moves the climax away from a dark house and into a cornfield maze (of course), and the confrontation is more verbal than you’d expect.
Some people hated this. They wanted a classic "unmasking" followed by a chase. What they got was a monologue about the burdens of expectations and the rage of the "forgotten" youth. It’s definitely a product of its time.
How to Enjoy It (Next Steps)
If you’re planning to watch There’s Someone in Your House, or if you’ve already seen it and want more, here is how to actually get the most out of the experience:
Read the book first. Seriously. Stephanie Perkins’ novel is a different beast entirely. It’s more of a character study and the mystery is handled with a bit more finesse. Seeing the changes the movie made is an interesting exercise in how Hollywood adapts YA fiction.
Watch Patrick Brice’s other work. If the style of the movie worked for you but the story felt a bit "Netflix-y," go watch Creep. It’s a found-footage masterpiece that shows what Brice can do with a tiny budget and a lot of psychological tension. It’s much more unsettling than anything in the Osborne High cornfields.
Look for the Easter eggs. The film is full of nods to classic slashers. From the way the camera moves to the specific lighting choices in the hallways, it’s a love letter to the 90s revival era (think I Know What You Did Last Summer).
Don't overthink the motive. Slashers often fall apart under the weight of logic. If you try to map out exactly how the killer got the masks made and the timing of the killings, you’ll find plot holes. Just enjoy the ride, the music, and the kills.
Ultimately, There’s Someone in Your House isn't going to redefine the genre. It’s not The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. But as a snapshot of how horror looks in the 2020s, it’s a fascinating, flawed, and visually striking piece of cinema that proves the "slasher" is a format that can be bent to fit almost any social anxiety.