# The Woman in the Yard
**The Woman in the Yard** is a 2025 American psychological horror film directed by [Jaume Collet-Serra](https://www.edgepedia.org/jaume-collet-serra) and written by Sam Stefanak, in which a grieving widow is menaced by a veiled woman in black who appears on her rural farmhouse's front lawn and slowly moves closer[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard). It stars [Danielle Deadwyler](https://www.edgepedia.org/danielle-deadwyler) as Ramona, with [Okwui Okpokwasili](https://www.edgepedia.org/okwui-okpokwasili) as the titular figure, and was produced by Blumhouse Productions and Universal Pictures[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Director / writer | Jaume Collet-Serra; screenplay by Sam Stefanak, his first feature screenplay[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard) • [2](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/the-woman-in-the-yard-release-date-trailer-cast-and-everything-we-know-about-the-horror-movie) |
| Cast | Danielle Deadwyler (Ramona), Okwui Okpokwasili (the Woman), Peyton Jackson (Taylor), Estella Kahiha (Annie), Russell Hornsby (David)[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard) |
| Release | Wide theatrical release March 28, 2025, by Universal; 2,842 opening theaters[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29) |
| Box office | $22,405,985 domestic and $23,311,502 worldwide against a $12,000,000 production budget; opening weekend $9,395,255[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29) |
| Reception | 41% Tomatometer (86 reviews) and 46% Popcornmeter on Rotten Tomatoes; Metascore 51 from 17 critic reviews[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-woman-in-the-yard/) |
| Runtime / rating | 88 minutes; PG-13 for terror, some violent content/bloody images, suicide-related content, and brief strong language[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard) |
| Home release | Digital April 15, 2025; premiered on Peacock June 27, 2025[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29) • [6](https://www.documentarytube.com/blog/how-to-watch-the-woman-in-the-yard-blumhouse-horror-from-the-director-of-carry-on/) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
Ramona (Danielle Deadwyler) lives in a remote, half-renovated Georgia farmhouse with her teenage son Taylor (Peyton Jackson) and young daughter Annie (Estella Kahiha), grieving her husband David ([Russell Hornsby](https://www.edgepedia.org/russell-hornsby)), who died in a car accident that also seriously injured her[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard). One day a woman shrouded entirely in black (Okwui Okpokwasili) appears sitting in the yard and tells Ramona, "Today's the day." Over the course of a single day the figure moves steadily closer to the house, and Ramona must protect her children from what the marketing described as a spectral presence whose intentions are anything but peaceful[1](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard) • [4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29).
The film is a single-location story that leans on one central image. Reviewers noted the device: a figure that approaches the house by increments across a sunny day, which The Guardian likened to the children's game Grandma's Footsteps[7](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/mar/28/the-woman-in-the-yard-review). Cinematographer Pawel Pogorzelski's bright countryside visuals stand against the dark figure on the lawn[8](https://www.theonlycritic.com/post/the-woman-in-the-yard-review-high-on-atmosphere-but-low-on-scares). The [British Board of Film Classification](https://www.edgepedia.org/british-board-of-film-classification), which classified the film as "strong horror," notes content including a hallucination of stabbing a child, jump scares involving a disfigured face in mirrors, and references to suicidal ideation[9](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-woman-in-the-yard-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdi3ndq2).
## Production
Blumhouse and [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures) produced the film, with [Jason Blum](https://www.edgepedia.org/jason-blum) and Stephanie Allain producing and Deadwyler, Collet-Serra, Gabrielle Ebron, Scott Greenberg, and James Moran as executive producers[2](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/the-woman-in-the-yard-release-date-trailer-cast-and-everything-we-know-about-the-horror-movie). It was the second collaboration between Collet-Serra and Deadwyler after the 2024 Netflix action film *Carry-On*, and was described at announcement as ambitious in scope but modest in budget[10](https://www.thewrap.com/danielle-deadwyler-blumhouse-movie-woman-in-the-yard/). According to IMDb, it was shot on location in Bostwick, Georgia[2](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/the-woman-in-the-yard-release-date-trailer-cast-and-everything-we-know-about-the-horror-movie).
## Release and box office
The film opened wide in the United States on March 28, 2025, across 2,842 theaters, earning $9,395,255 in its opening weekend, about 41.9 percent of its eventual domestic total of $22,405,985[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29). Worldwide it grossed $23,311,502 against a $12,000,000 production budget, a return of roughly 1.9 times the budget, and 96.1 percent of its gross came from the domestic market[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29). Trade coverage grouped it among Blumhouse's modest 2025 performers, calling it a minor win[11](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/horror-movies/black-phone-2-beats-out-flagging-tron-ares-at-the-box-office-in-much-needed-box-office-win-for-blumhouse/).
It arrived on digital platforms on April 15, 2025, and premiered on [Peacock](https://www.edgepedia.org/peacock-streaming-service) on June 27, 2025; as of August 2026 it was listed for subscription streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Prime Video with Ads[4](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29) • [6](https://www.documentarytube.com/blog/how-to-watch-the-woman-in-the-yard-blumhouse-horror-from-the-director-of-carry-on/).
## Critical reception
Reception was mixed. The Tomatometer stood at 41 percent from 86 reviews, the verified-audience Popcornmeter at 46 percent, and the Metascore at 51 from 17 critic reviews, categorized as mixed or average[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard) • [5](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-woman-in-the-yard/). The Rotten Tomatoes critics consensus states that the film has spooky promise in its premise and a committed performance from Deadwyler, but that its heavy-handed metaphor leaves little room for scares or surprise[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard).
**Consistent praise for the lead.** Reviewers across the spectrum credited Deadwyler's performance. Variety's Owen Gleiberman, otherwise negative, called her a major actor; Helen O'Hara of Empire gave the film 3 of 5 stars and highlighted the always reliable Deadwyler; IGN wrote that the film is further proof of her skill as a lead performer[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/critics-have-seen-the-woman-in-the-yard-and-they-arent-holding-back-their-opinions-of-the-frustrating-horror-flick). Deadwyler was previously BAFTA-nominated for *Till* and starred in *The Harder They Fall* and *The Piano Lesson*[2](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/the-woman-in-the-yard-release-date-trailer-cast-and-everything-we-know-about-the-horror-movie).
**Criticized structure.** The most common objection was to the screenplay. Reviewers described the plot as confused and directionless, with abandoned plot threads and twists including a mirror-dimension device that muddled the ending[13](https://www.yahoo.com/news/woman-yard-review-danielle-deadwyler-210000243.html). Gleiberman called the script a minimalist gloss on *The Shining*, and Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting, who rated it 1.5 of 5 skulls, called it a retread of the grief-horror blueprint of *The Babadook*[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/critics-have-seen-the-woman-in-the-yard-and-they-arent-holding-back-their-opinions-of-the-frustrating-horror-flick). Others were warmer: [The Hollywood Reporter](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-hollywood-reporter)'s Frank Scheck wrote that viewers interested in cerebral horror rather than gore would find considerable rewards in the slow-burn style and its cryptic, interpretation-open twist ending[14](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-woman-in-the-yard/critic-reviews/).
## Themes and interpretation
The film belongs to the strand of horror in which the supernatural threat externalizes grief, guilt, and depression rather than serving as an independent monster[15](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-woman-in-the-yard-movie-review-2025). The obvious reading, that the interloper represents unaddressed grief, is complicated in the script by threads involving the mother's stitches, sanity, and the family dog[7](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/mar/28/the-woman-in-the-yard-review). The ending is deliberately open to interpretation, and audience discussion has read the woman as a manifestation of the mother's suicidal ideation or survivor's guilt, readings supported by the film's PG-13 suicide-related content advisory and the BBFC's note of references to suicide ideation[9](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-woman-in-the-yard-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdi3ndq2) • [12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/critics-have-seen-the-woman-in-the-yard-and-they-arent-holding-back-their-opinions-of-the-frustrating-horror-flick). Empire noted the film as a rare horror movie to manage scares in broad daylight[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/critics-have-seen-the-woman-in-the-yard-and-they-arent-holding-back-their-opinions-of-the-frustrating-horror-flick).
## References
1. [The Woman in the Yard, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-woman-in-the-yard)
2. [The Woman in the Yard: how to watch, trailer, cast and more, WhatToWatch](https://www.whattowatch.com/watching-guides/the-woman-in-the-yard-release-date-trailer-cast-and-everything-we-know-about-the-horror-movie)
3. [The Woman in the Yard, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/the_woman_in_the_yard)
4. [The Woman in the Yard (2025) Box Office and Financial Information, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Woman-in-the-Yard-The-%282025%29)
5. [The Woman in the Yard Reviews and Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-woman-in-the-yard/)
6. [How to Watch 'The Woman in the Yard', DocumentaryTube (August 10, 2026)](https://www.documentarytube.com/blog/how-to-watch-the-woman-in-the-yard-blumhouse-horror-from-the-director-of-carry-on/)
7. [The Woman in the Yard review, The Guardian (Mike McCahill, March 28, 2025)](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/mar/28/the-woman-in-the-yard-review)
8. [The Woman in the Yard review, The Only Critic](https://www.theonlycritic.com/post/the-woman-in-the-yard-review-high-on-atmosphere-but-low-on-scares)
9. [The Woman in the Yard, British Board of Film Classification](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-woman-in-the-yard-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0xmdi3ndq2)
10. [Danielle Deadwyler to Star in and EP Blumhouse Thriller 'The Woman in the Yard', TheWrap (February 14, 2024)](https://www.thewrap.com/danielle-deadwyler-blumhouse-movie-woman-in-the-yard/)
11. [Black Phone 2 beats out flagging Tron: Ares at the box office, GamesRadar (October 20, 2025)](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/horror-movies/black-phone-2-beats-out-flagging-tron-ares-at-the-box-office-in-much-needed-box-office-win-for-blumhouse/)
12. [Critics Have Seen The Woman In The Yard, CinemaBlend (March 28, 2025)](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/critics-have-seen-the-woman-in-the-yard-and-they-arent-holding-back-their-opinions-of-the-frustrating-horror-flick)
13. [The Woman in the Yard Review, WEHT/Yahoo](https://www.yahoo.com/news/woman-yard-review-danielle-deadwyler-210000243.html)
14. [The Woman in the Yard critic reviews - Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-woman-in-the-yard/critic-reviews/)
15. [The Woman in the Yard movie review, RogerEbert.com (Peter Sobczynski, March 28, 2025)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-woman-in-the-yard-movie-review-2025)
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*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) › Psychological horror films › Psychological horror films, 2010s and later*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license