Jessica Chastain’s new horror film Other Mommy opens Friday amid a wave of negative early reviews, with critics calling it dull, silly, and poorly executed.
Other Mommy hits theaters on Friday, October 9, but the reception is already shaping up to be one of the year’s most brutal for a major genre release.
Critics are piling in with scathing takes. Doug Jamieson of The Jam Report gave the film just 1.5 out of 5 stars, calling it "truly dreadful" and accusing it of relying on "endless parade of ineffective jump scares" and "awful CGI." He noted the finale drew unintentional laughter — a rare misfire for a horror film aiming for dread.
Peter Gray of The AU Review echoed the sentiment, rating it two stars and labeling it "more silly than scary," despite acknowledging one gory sequence. "INSIDIOUS-lite supernatural 'horror' flick is more silly than it is scary," he wrote, adding that even Chastain’s commitment couldn’t save it.
Simon Foster of SCREEN-SPACE delivered a one-and-a-half-star takedown, criticizing the film’s "ponderously paced" rhythm and "over-directed" style, calling the message "half-baked" and the visuals gimmicky. Global Box Office placed it among Chastain’s worst films ever.
Only a few outlets offered mild praise. The Mattinee Show gave it three stars, citing "genuinely unsettling moments" but calling it "messier than scary." Heaven of Horror also landed at three stars, noting "plenty of sinister moments" despite disliking part of the ending.
As of Thursday, October 8, Rotten Tomatoes shows zero reviews for Other Mommy, an anomaly given the volume of published critiques. That means no official score yet, but the consensus is clear: this isn’t the breakout horror hit many were hoping for.
Directed by Rob Savage and adapted from Josh Malerman’s novel Incidents Around the House, the film centers on eight-year-old Bela (Arabella Olivia Clark), whose life unravels when a supernatural being begins mimicking her mother. Jessica Chastain plays both roles, alongside Jay Duplass, Dichen Lachman, Arian Moayed, and Karen Allen.
The title itself sparked curiosity. Why "Other Mommy" instead of "Other Mother"? Chastain recently shared the real-life inspiration behind the book, which adds emotional weight to the premise. But that depth hasn’t translated into audience or critical approval so far.
With opening weekend looming, the question isn’t whether the film will play, it’s whether it can survive the backlash.
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