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The Woman in the Yard

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The Woman in the Yard
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJaume Collet-Serra
Written bySam Stefanak
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyPawel Pogorzelski
Edited by
  • Timothy Alverson
  • Krisztian Majdik
Music byLorne Balfe
Production
companies
Distributed byUniversal Pictures
Release dates
  • March 27, 2025 (2025-3-27) (Australia)
  • March 28, 2025 (2025-3-28) (United States)
Running time
87 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$12 million[2]
Box office$9.4 million[3]

The Woman in the Yard is a 2025 American psychological horror film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra and written by Sam Stefanak in his feature film screenwriting debut. The film stars Danielle Deadwyler, Okwui Okpokwasili, Peyton Jackson, Estella Kahiha, and Russell Hornsby.

The Woman in the Yard was released in the United States by Universal Pictures on March 28, 2025.

Plot

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Ramona is a widowed single mother who was disabled after a car accident that killed her husband David. She cares for their two children Taylor and Annie, but she is strict and emotionally distant from them. A mysterious woman draped in black appears in the front yard, claiming that "Today's the day". The Woman uses shadow magic to attack their dog Charlie who goes missing and is presumed dead.

Ramona tries to keep the kids away from the Woman, who seems to know the true circumstances around David's death. Ramona made the kids think that he was driving and caused the accident, but it was really Ramona who was driving and crashed the car after an argument with David about her unhappiness with her life, marriage, and family. The Woman then seems to be using a dark power to antagonize the family and seemingly take the kids away. Ramona surrenders herself to the Woman and agrees to send the kids away for safety if she is going to die.

The Woman is revealed to be a physical manifestation of Ramona's psyche and only appeared because Ramona was praying for her. When pressed what she prayed for she claims it was strength to carry on after David's death, when in reality she was praying for the strength to end her life because of her depression. The Woman intends to help her commit suicide, convincing Ramona that the children are better off without her.

After Ramona says goodbye to her kids, the Woman leads her to the farm, assisting in pointing the rifle at Ramona. But before she pulls the trigger, her children return along with the dog Charlie and the Woman disappears. They ask if the Woman will come back and Ramona assures them she will be ready. Walking past a sign in front of the farm labeled "Iris Haven", they return to the house and embrace. The camera pans into the house, revealing a painting Ramona had not finished that shows her and the Woman's faces together with Ramona's name spelled backward.

Cast

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Production

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The film's screenplay was first written in 2020 by first-time screenwriter Sam Stefanak as The Man in the Yard. It went on to appear in that year's edition of the annual "Black List" of most-liked unproduced screenplays.[4]

In February 2024, it was announced that the film was put into development at Universal Pictures and Blumhouse. Jaume Collet-Serra had been hired to direct from Stefanak's script, which went through more revisions and plot changes. Danielle Deadwyler cast in the lead role.[5] In April 2024, it was reported that Okwui Okpokwasili[6] and Russell Hornsby[7] had joined. In May, Peyton Jackson and Estella Kahiha joined the cast in undisclosed roles.[8]

Principal photography began on April 26, 2024.[9] The film was the first major production to be shot at Athena Studios in Athens, Georgia. Filming also took place in nearby Bostwick, Georgia.[10]

Release

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The Woman in the Yard was released in the United States on March 28, 2025.[11] It was previously scheduled for release on January 10, 2025,[5] before being briefly removed from the release schedule.[12]

Reception

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Box office

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In the United States and Canada, The Woman in the Yard was released alongside A Working Man, The Penguin Lessons, and Death of a Unicorn, and was projected to gross around $5 million from 2,842 theaters in its opening weekend.[13] The film made $3.7 million on its first day, including $875,000 from Thursday night previews. It went on to overperform and debut to $9.5 million, finishing in fourth.[2]

Critical response

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On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 43% of 44 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 5.2/10.[14] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 50 out of 100, based on 16 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[15] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C–" on an A+ to F scale.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "The Woman in the Yard (15)". BBFC. February 13, 2025. Retrieved March 9, 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "'Princess Mononoke' Re-Release Leads Previews With $1.2M, 'A Working Man' $1.1M & More – Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
  3. ^ "The Woman in the Yard – Financial Information". The Numbers. Retrieved March 31, 2025.
  4. ^ https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2020/12/the-black-list-2020-desus-and-mero?srsltid=AfmBOoqdKDKKFXtmSVhgbWiSctAW9yoEawCcHgYaz1miLZwLXhk6WZRs
  5. ^ a b Galuppo, Mia (February 14, 2024). "Danielle Deadwyler to Star in Blumhouse Thriller 'The Woman in the Yard'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 24, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
  6. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 4, 2024). "Blumhouse's 'The Woman in the Yard' Adds Okwui Okpokwasili". Deadline Hollywood.
  7. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 12, 2024). "Blumhouse & Universal's 'The Woman In The Yard' Adds Russell Hornsby". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 12, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
  8. ^ Kroll, Justin (May 6, 2024). "Peyton Jackson And Estella Kahiha Join Blumhouse Pic 'Woman In The Yard'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 6, 2024. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
  9. ^ Blumhouse [@blumhouse] (April 26, 2024). "The Woman in the Yard is in production!" (Tweet). Retrieved April 27, 2024 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ^ Shearer, Andrew (January 14, 2025). "Did you know an upcoming horror movie was made in Athens? Watch the trailer here". Athens Banner-Herald. Retrieved January 16, 2025.
  11. ^ Grobar, Matt (May 16, 2024). "Universal Dates 'Five Nights At Freddy's 2,' 'Woman In The Yard' & 'Drop'; 'The Black Phone', 'M3GAN' Sequels Pushed". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 19, 2024. Retrieved May 16, 2024.
  12. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (March 29, 2024). "Blumhouse's 'Wolf Man' Runs From Fall To MLK Weekend 2025; 'The Woman In The Yard' Unset For Now". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on March 29, 2024. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  13. ^ D'Alessandro, Anthony (March 26, 2025). "'Snow White' In All Her Controversy To Trip Jenna Ortega's 'Unicorn', Jason Statham's 'Working Man' & More – Box Office Preview". Deadline. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
  14. ^ "The Woman in the Yard". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved March 30, 2025.
  15. ^ "The Woman in the Yard". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
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