Following the success of The Housemaid after its December theatrical release, Lionsgate announced that The Housemaid’s Secret will start production in 2026. The Paul Feig-directed Hitchockian thriller was among the top films of the year as announced in this year’s Solzy Awards.

Coming off the breakout box office success of The Housemaid, which has taken in over $75 million domestically in its first 17 days of release and $133 million worldwide with international territories continuing to roll out through January, Lionsgate announced today that it is planning a 2026 production start for the next film in the franchise, The Housemaid’s Secret. Based on the second novel in Freida McFadden’s best-selling trilogy, The Housemaid’s Secret has been in development for the past few months.

Screenwriter Rebecca Sonnenshine, who adapted The Housemaid, will return to adapt the sequel for producers Todd Lieberman of Hidden Pictures, alongside Paul Feig and Laura Fischer of Feig’s Pretty Dangerous Pictures who are also returning as producers, with Hidden Pictures’ Carly Elter and Alex Young and The Housemaid star Sydney Sweeney executive producing. McFadden will also serve as an executive producer.  The project is being developed with an eye for director Paul Feig and stars Sydney Sweeney and Michele Morrone to return.

“It’s clear from both the global box office and from the outpouring on social media that audiences have responded strongly – and audibly – to the totally unique and truly theatrical experience of The Housemaid and want to know what happens next,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Chair Adam Fogelson. “We believed in these stories from the very beginning, and we are beyond excited to bring the next chapter of Millie’s story to life on-screen in collaboration with our outstanding creative partners Todd, Paul, Laura, Carly, Alex, and Sydney. The Housemaid’s Secret is another wildly thrilling book in Freida’s series that has captivated readers worldwide, and we look forward to translating it into a similarly rousing and riotous moviegoing experience.”

“We’re thrilled with the reception and incredibly proud of this entire team from Freida McFadden to our partners at Lionsgate, and the outstanding work of Paul and Laura. Most rewarding has been seeing how strongly audiences are connecting with the film,” said Todd Lieberman of Hidden Pictures.

Paul Feig added, “It’s been thrilling to see audiences around the world fall in love with The Housemaid and the incredible work of our talented cast and crew. We’re lucky that Freida McFadden has already extended Millie’s journey on the page, and that we get to work with Rebecca Sonnenshine and Lionsgate to bring this next story to audiences.”

The Housemaid book series has sold over 12 million units across all titles, with the second book, The Housemaid’s Secret, accounting for four million of those. Translated into 40 languages, the book has been a New York Times bestseller for 65 weeks and counting and won the 2023 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Thriller.

The film will be overseen by Lionsgate’s Chelsea Kujawa, who also oversaw the first film and brought the project into the studio, alongside Maria Ascanio. Robert Melnik negotiated the deals for the studio.

Sonnenshine is represented by UTA, Circle Management + Production, Jill Fritzo PR, and Hansen, Jacobson, Teller, Hoberman, Newman, Warren, Richman, Rush, Kaller, Gellman, Meigs & Fox. Freida McFadden is represented by Christina Hogrebe of Jane Rotrosen Agency, Angela Cheng Caplan of Cheng Caplan Company, and Allison Binder of Goodman Genow Schenkman Smelkinson + Christopher.

The wildly entertaining thriller The Housemaid is directed by Paul Feig from a screenplay by Rebecca Sonnenshine, based on the best-selling book by Freida McFadden, produced by Todd Lieberman, p.g.a., Laura Fischer, p.g.a. and Paul Feig, and executive produced by Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried and Freida McFadden. It stars Sydney Sweeney, Amanda Seyfried, Brandon Sklenar, Michele Morrone, and Elizabeth Perkins.

The film plunges audiences into a twisted world where perfection is an illusion, and nothing is as it seems. Trying to escape her past, Millie (Sweeney) accepts a job as a live-in housemaid for the wealthy Nina (Seyfried) and Andrew Winchester (Brandon Sklenar). But what begins as a dream job quickly unravels into something far more dangerous — a sexy, seductive game of secrets, scandal, and power. Behind the Winchesters’ closed doors lies a world of shocking twists that will leave you guessing until the very end.

Lionsgate presents a Hidden Pictures / Pretty Dangerous Pictures production.

A release date for The Housemaid’s Secret has not been announced.

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