The Skeleton Key

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The Skeleton Key

PG-13

Released Aug 12, 2005

1h 44m

Mystery & Thriller

Horror

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Popcornmeter

37%

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154 Reviews

58%

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100,000+ Ratings

Caroline Ellis (Kate Hudson), a good-natured nurse living in New Orleans, quits her job at a hospice to work for Violet Devereaux (Gena Rowlands), an elderly woman whose husband, Ben (John Hurt), is in poor health following a stroke. When Caroline begins to explore the couple's rundown Bayou mansion, she discovers strange artifacts and learns the house has a mysterious past. As she continues to investigate, she realizes that Violet is keeping a sinister secret about the cause of Ben's illness.

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Critics Consensus

Thanks to its creaky and formulaic script, The Skeleton Key is more mumbo-jumbo than hoodoo and more dull than scary.

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Nick Schager

Lessons of Darkness

A blundering New Orleans-set thriller under the spell of archaic stereotypes about Southern Bayou blacks.

Rated: C

Aug 26, 2005

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

Blame screenwriter Ehren Kruger (Arlington Road). I can't tell if this hit-and-miss scribe is a remarkably talented guy who's unfortunately had a few misfires or if his few good scripts were just the result of a large amount of blind luck.

Rated: 2/4

Aug 20, 2005

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Richard Roeper

Ebert & Roeper

This is a moody, creepy thriller with some genuinely scary moments and a couple of twists that took me completely by surprise.

Aug 15, 2005

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

The supernatural element extends beyond what's taking place on the screen, as it appears that Rowlands, delivering a performance of high camp, has been possessed by What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?-era Bette Davis.

Rated: 2.5/4

Sep 17, 2021

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

It is much more difficult to decide whether The Skeleton Key is mildly offensive or nicely provocative - or for that matter if it is dreadfully silly or actually quite smart.

Rated: 6/10

May 8, 2021

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Mark H. Harris

Black Horror Movies

Ever since The Sixth Sense, thriller "twists" have become increasingly lame and pointless, but in The Skeleton Key, it actually works quite well.

Rated: 3.8/5

Jan 6, 2020

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Chelsie G

Worth a watch if you’re looking for an atmospheric thriller. The New Orleans baylou setting is great. Storyline is above most modern day thrillers. I liked the voodoo witchiness of the plot but characters are never deep enough to get you fully bought in. Overall, I’d recommend watching it but probably not twice.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/29/25

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Karen R

Loads of darkened shots to supposedly add atmosphere but really a bit of a cop out with lighting folks... stuff is more scary with some light... Standout actor playing Ben ... the lawyer character is so obvious... but still an interesting watch which has stayed as good as it ever was over 20 years.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/05/25

Full Review

Mark C

Pretty entertaining and pretty twisted. There are obvious tropes like house being pitch black outside of a couple candles. The casting choice of Peter Sarsgaard somewhat tips the hand a little bit.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

07/16/25

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Kat L

Totally underrated horror movie that is basically copied by Jordan Peele's Get Out

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/13/25

Full Review

Jenesis J

This movie deserves more credit than it gets. It’s an entertaining psychological thriller that keeps you asking questions. I had hoped for a different ending, but honestly, it didn’t ruin the whole movie like many horror/thriller movies do. It kept to the story and actually made sense.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/03/25

Full Review

Chief B

I can't believe how the ratings of a good movie can have it so wrong. I don't want to use the word underrated BUT this movie is very underrated and I know quite some folk that do love it.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/12/25

Full Review

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Iain Softley

Director

Kate Hudson

Caroline Ellis

Gena Rowlands

Violet Devereaux

John Hurt

Ben Devereaux

Peter Sarsgaard

Luke

Joy Bryant

Jill

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - It Doesn't Work If You Don't Believe

2:02

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Ghost in the Mirror

1:41

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Get Me Out of Here!

2:47

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Crawling Away

2:47

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - The Body Stealers

2:15

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Chased by Conjurers

2:18

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Performing the Ritual

1:47

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Dark Magic History

3:20

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Escaping the House

3:30

The Skeleton Key: Official Clip - Hoodoo Attic

2:52

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Synopsis

Caroline Ellis (Kate Hudson), a good-natured nurse living in New Orleans, quits her job at a hospice to work for Violet Devereaux (Gena Rowlands), an elderly woman whose husband, Ben (John Hurt), is in poor health following a stroke. When Caroline begins to explore the couple's rundown Bayou mansion, she discovers strange artifacts and learns the house has a mysterious past. As she continues to investigate, she realizes that Violet is keeping a sinister secret about the cause of Ben's illness.

Director: Iain Softley
Producer: Daniel Bobker, Michael Shamberg, Stacey Sher
Screenwriter: Ehren Kruger
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Production Co: Double Feature Films
Rating: PG-13 (Some Partial Nudity|Disturbing Images|Thematic Material|Violence)
Genre: Mystery & Thriller, Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 12, 2005, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 7, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $47.8M
Runtime: 1h 44m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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