2025 has been anextremely fickle year for horror thus farsince it has vacillated between smash hits and lukewarm box office performances. On the successful side, there have been films likeSinners, which surpassed even generous estimates by making $364 million worldwide. Another stunner was the sequel movieFinal Destination: Bloodlines.
On the other hand, there have been some big misses from major horror producers. A24 had a tough March, asDeath of a UnicornandOpusstruggled with reception and at the box office. They made up for it withbetter critical reviews forBring Her Back, but still underperformed.
Blumhouse is also having a disappointing year so far. The studio has typically been fairly reliable within its horror niche. Last year, they made an impact with theirEnglish-language remake ofSpeak No Evil. They have historically produced other hits, includingGet Out,Ma, andThe Black Phone.
However, Blumhouse is not immune to the kind of inconsistency that has occurred this year in horror. They began the year with an underwhelming remake ofWolf Man. Then,the studio went on to produce another movie that proved divisive.
The Woman In The Yard Is One Of 2025’s Most Controversial Horror Movies
It Split Critics And Audiences
On March 28, during horror’s most inconsistent month of 2025 so far, Blumhouse releasedThe Woman in the Yard. This film became incredibly divisive among those who watched it.
On the critics' side, the film got a40% Tomatometer on Rotten Tomatoes. While this represents a score classified in the “rotten” category on the aggregate site, it also reveals that many people had disparate opinions on the movie.
The Woman in the Yardgot a mixed reviewfromScreenRant’s Nick Bythrow, who awarded the movie 5 out of 10 stars. While he thought that the film presented “interesting ideas” and featured a great performance by Danielle Deadwyler, he felt that the ideas were not expressed in an interesting way.
Sometimes, films are apt to create division between the critics and audiences. In this case, audiences were split too. ThePopcornmeter expressed a similarly disparate opinion, standing at 47%. Those who liked the film were drawn in by the performances and use of symbolism, but its detractors complained about the script and unsatisfying ending.
The Woman In The Yard Is Now Streaming On Max - What It’s About
A Veiled Woman Haunts An Unsuspecting Family
The Woman in the Yardis now available to stream on Max. This will give the film a second chance to gain an audience after the film’s lackluster theatrical run,where it made just $23.3 million.
Plot-wise,The Woman in the Yardtells the story of a mysterious veiled woman who repeatedly shows up in a family’s front yard. As the woman begins leaving chilling and terrifying messages,the family starts to question why she is there and whether she might pose a real threat.
The film later attempts to divulge some of the origin story behind this woman. This was one of the more controversial elements in the film’s reviews.
Should You Watch The Woman In The Yard?
One Element Makes It Worth It
The Woman in the Yardis far from Blumhouse’s best work. As the reviews indicate, it has a good premise, but its execution is fairly bland and tame horror. Thetrailers forThe Woman in the Yardlooked fairly atmospheric and promising, but the film itself left me, like many, underwhelmed.
That said, the movie is still worth watching for one reason: Deadwyler’s performance. Having previously been snubbed for an Academy Award nomination forTilland again last year forThe Piano Lesson,Deadwyler is one of the most underrated actors working today.
The Woman in the Yardfurther proves the actor’s strength, giving her a type of role that she has not taken on before. She adapts well to the horror medium, giving a compelling performance even when the writing quality behind her character is lacking.
