{ "id": "epn9sep4fw", "slug": "hush-2016-film", "title": "Hush (2016 film)", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror", "label": "Horror films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films", "label": "Slasher films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020: Slasher films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films", "path": [ { "id": "geo.us", "label": "United States", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001", "label": "United States · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror", "label": "Horror films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror" }, { "id": "geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films", "label": "Slasher films", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.us.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films" } ] } ], "excerpt": "Hush (2016) is a Mike Flanagan home-invasion horror-thriller co-written with and starring Kate Siegel as Maddie, a deaf-mute writer stalked by a masked killer (John Gallagher Jr.); released by Netflix April 8, 2016 after a SXSW premiere, praised for sound design, criticized for deaf representation.", "snippet": "Hush (2016) is a Mike Flanagan home-invasion horror-thriller co-written with and starring Kate Siegel as Maddie, a deaf-mute writer stalked by a masked killer (John Gallagher Jr.); released by Netflix April 8, 2016 after a SXSW premiere, praised for sound design, criticized for deaf representation.", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.horror.slasher-films", "markdown": "# Hush (2016 film)\n\n**Hush** is a 2016 American home-invasion horror-thriller directed and co-written by Mike Flanagan, starring [Kate Siegel](https://www.edgepedia.org/kate-siegel) as Maddie, a deaf and mute novelist living alone in a secluded cabin who must fight a masked killer without hearing him approach or calling for help.[1](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/) [John Gallagher Jr.](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-gallagher-jr) plays the unnamed killer, credited as \"The Man\".[1](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/) The film premiered at the [South by Southwest](https://www.edgepedia.org/south-by-southwest) festival on March 12, 2016, was acquired by Netflix, and launched as a Netflix original on April 8, 2016.[2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016) • [3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Directors and writers | Mike Flanagan, co-written with star Kate Siegel[1](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/) |\n| Release | SXSW premiere March 12, 2016; Netflix original from April 8, 2016[2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016) |\n| Cast | Kate Siegel (Maddie), John Gallagher Jr. (The Man), Samantha Sloyan (Sarah), Michael Trucco (John), Emma Graves (Max)[1](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/) |\n| Runtime and rating | 82 minutes, rated R[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/hush-2016?package=plc) |\n| Production | Roughly $1 million budget; shot in Fairhope, Alabama, in mid-2015 in about twelve shooting days[2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016) |\n| Critical reception | 92% Tomatometer from 48 reviews and 73% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes; Metascore 67 on Metacritic[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hush_2016) • [6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/hush-2016/critic-reviews/) |\n| Availability | Left Netflix in 2023 and was for a time unavailable on any streaming service or DVD[7](https://www.thepopverse.com/movies-mike-flanagan-hush-2016-left-netflix-new-streaming-home-soon) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Premise\n\nMaddie is a writer who lost her hearing and speech as a teenager and retreated to a remote house in the woods to finish her novel.[1](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/) • [3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016) After her neighbor Sarah (Samantha Sloyan) visits and leaves, Maddie watches, unaware, as Sarah is killed at her kitchen door by a crossbow-wielding man in a mask.[3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016) The killer, discovering that his prey cannot hear, chooses to toy with her rather than kill her immediately, and the film becomes a cat-and-mouse contest in which Maddie must use her wits and her surroundings to survive.[8](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/mike-flanagan-kate-siegel-break-silence-talk-hush/)\n\n## Production\n\nThe premise grew out of a dinner conversation between Flanagan and Siegel, who are married, about the 1967 thriller *Wait Until Dark*, which turns a home invasion on its head by making the victim blind, and about Flanagan's wish to make a film without dialogue.[8](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/mike-flanagan-kate-siegel-break-silence-talk-hush/) • [9](https://www.rogerebert.com/women-writers-week/hush-is-the-best-horror-movie-you-probably-havent-seen) Siegel contributed a recurrent fear of seeing someone standing at a window at night, and the pair developed the screenplay while Flanagan was finishing post-production on *Oculus*.[8](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/mike-flanagan-kate-siegel-break-silence-talk-hush/) • [2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016) Trevor Macy's Intrepid Pictures championed the project as a fast, contained follow-up to *Oculus*, and [Blumhouse Productions](https://www.edgepedia.org/blumhouse-productions) came on board under [Jason Blum](https://www.edgepedia.org/jason-blum)'s microbudget model.[2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016)\n\n[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) took place in [Fairhope, Alabama](https://www.edgepedia.org/fairhope-alabama), in mid-2015, using a single residence in the woods as the primary location; the state's film production rebate made the financing work for a sub-two-million-dollar genre project, and the unit completed the film in approximately twelve shooting days.[2](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016)\n\n## Sound design and style\n\n**Sound is the film's central device.** The opening scene establishes Maddie's deafness by letting the audience hear eggs cracking and asparagus sizzling, then dropping the sound away as the camera closes on her face.[3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016) Because horror films ordinarily depend on sound cues for impact, removing the protagonist's hearing lets the film exploit its audio to an unusual degree, and reviewers repeatedly identified the sound design as its greatest strength.[3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016) • [10](https://silverscreenriot.com/sxsw-16-review-hush/) The film proceeds with virtually no dialogue, mixing spoken lines with sign language that is subtitled for the audience.[8](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/mike-flanagan-kate-siegel-break-silence-talk-hush/) • [11](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/hush) RogerEbert.com's review noted that Flanagan avoids the jump-scare tactics common in low-budget horror, with the most shocking moments arriving without loud music cues.[3](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016)\n\n## Reception\n\nThe film holds a 92% Tomatometer score from 48 reviews and a 73% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, whose critics consensus describes it as navigating \"the bloody waters of home invasion thrillers and incisive slashers for a contemporary horror puree\".[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hush_2016) Metacritic records a Metascore of 67, with five positive and two mixed reviews and none negative.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/hush-2016/critic-reviews/) Reviewers praised Siegel's performance and the film's tension; the AV Club's A.A. Dowd called it \"an effectively straightforward exercise in suspense\" that positioned Flanagan as a filmmaker with a strong grasp of horror's fundamentals.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hush_2016) Time later ranked it 14th on its list of the best Blumhouse horror movies, describing it as deconstructing genre tropes for a fresh spin on the home-invasion format.[12](https://time.com/6837569/best-horror-movies-blumhouse-ranked/)\n\nThe film is frequently grouped with a wave of \"sensory horror\" pictures built around a character's impaired perception. Commentators cite it as a precursor to *A Quiet Place* (2018) and *Bird Box* (2018), and as a descendant of *Wait Until Dark*.[9](https://www.rogerebert.com/women-writers-week/hush-is-the-best-horror-movie-you-probably-havent-seen) • [13](https://etda.libraries.psu.edu/files/final_submissions/26772)\n\n## Deaf representation\n\nThe film's portrayal of deafness has drawn sustained criticism from deaf commentators. A central objection is the casting of Siegel, a hearing actress, as a deaf character; deaf actress [Millicent Simmonds](https://www.edgepedia.org/millicent-simmonds) of *A Quiet Place* said she and her deaf friends were highly critical of the film because it did not feel real, and Flanagan and Siegel have been open and apologetic about the casting, saying it is not a decision they would make today.[14](https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/knots/article/download/42953/33288/120956) Scholars have also criticized the film's depiction of Maddie as an expert lip reader, a common stereotype, and its implication that deaf people are simultaneously sensorially inept and endowed with sensory superpowers.[14](https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/knots/article/download/42953/33288/120956) A deaf critic writing in *Bright Wall/Dark Room* argued that the film treats deafness as a medical problem and a plot device rather than exploring Maddie's experience, dropping out of her headspace once the kills begin.[15](https://www.brightwalldarkroom.com/2022/11/26/the-strange-horror-of-failure/) Other commentary has been more mixed, crediting the film with showing deaf agency and reframing deafness as a strength even while judging its authenticity compromised.[14](https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/knots/article/download/42953/33288/120956)\n\n## Availability\n\nHush left Netflix in 2023 and for a period was unavailable on any streaming service or on DVD, an absence noted as unusual for a film regarded as a modern horror classic; Flanagan has been critical of Netflix's prioritization of subscriptions over physical media.[7](https://www.thepopverse.com/movies-mike-flanagan-hush-2016-left-netflix-new-streaming-home-soon) • [9](https://www.rogerebert.com/women-writers-week/hush-is-the-best-horror-movie-you-probably-havent-seen) Streaming listings have since changed again, with the film appearing on services including Netflix, Prime Video, and Peacock in some regions.[4](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/hush-2016?package=plc)\n\n## References\n\n1. [Hush, Mike Flanagan official site](https://mikeflanaganfilm.com/project/hush/)\n2. [Hush (2016) Budget: $1M Netflix Home-Invasion Thriller, Saturation.io](https://saturation.io/budgets/hush-2016)\n3. [Hush movie review & film summary, RogerEbert.com (Brian Tallerico, April 8, 2016)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hush-2016)\n4. [Hush (2016) streaming details, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/hush-2016?package=plc)\n5. [Hush (2016), Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/hush_2016)\n6. [Hush (2016) critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/hush-2016/critic-reviews/)\n7. [There's a Mike Flanagan horror movie with a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score, but isn't available to watch anywhere, Popverse](https://www.thepopverse.com/movies-mike-flanagan-hush-2016-left-netflix-new-streaming-home-soon)\n8. [Mike Flanagan and Kate Siegel Break the Silence to Talk Hush, SCREAM Horror Magazine (April 8, 2016)](https://www.screamhorrormag.com/mike-flanagan-kate-siegel-break-silence-talk-hush/)\n9. [\"Hush\" is the Best Horror Movie You Probably Haven't Seen, RogerEbert.com](https://www.rogerebert.com/women-writers-week/hush-is-the-best-horror-movie-you-probably-havent-seen)\n10. [SXSW '16 Review: 'HUSH', Silver Screen Riot (March 15, 2016)](https://silverscreenriot.com/sxsw-16-review-hush/)\n11. [Hush, Parents' Guide & Movie Review, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/hush)\n12. [The Best Blumhouse Horror Movies, Ranked, TIME (March 2024)](https://time.com/6837569/best-horror-movies-blumhouse-ranked/)\n13. [Sound horror thesis, Pennsylvania State University](https://etda.libraries.psu.edu/files/final_submissions/26772)\n14. [Elliott Lehman, \"The Simultaneous Cultural Deafness and Cultural Shock of Hush\", Knots (University of Toronto, 2023)](https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/knots/article/download/42953/33288/120956)\n15. [Ross Showalter, \"The Strange Horror of Failure\", Bright Wall/Dark Room (November 26, 2022)](https://www.brightwalldarkroom.com/2022/11/26/the-strange-horror-of-failure/)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Horror films (individual works) › Slasher films*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"Hush (2016 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[Hush (2016 film)](https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film](https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"Hush (2016 film)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/hush-2016-film. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "Hush is a Mike Flanagan home-invasion horror-thriller co-written with and starring Kate Siegel as Maddie, a deaf-mute writer stalked by a masked killer; released by Netflix April 8, 2016 after a SXSW premiere, praised for sound design, criticized for deaf representation." }