The Man in My Basement

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1:55

The Man in My Basement

R

Sep 2025

1h 55m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

40%

Tomatometer

48 Reviews

21%

Popcornmeter

50+ Ratings

In the African American neighborhood of Sag Harbor, New York, Charles Blakey (Corey Hawkins) is out of work, out of luck and on the verge of foreclosure on his ancestral home. A knock on the door from a mysterious businessman, Anniston Bennet (Willem Dafoe), brings a bizarre and lucrative proposition; rent his dusty stand-up basement out for the summer and receive enough money to clear his debts for good. Once Charles accepts, he finds himself led down a terrifying path that confronts his family's ghosts and locks the men in a terrifying puzzle, at the heart of it race, the source of their traumas and the root of all evil.

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Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

Oct 7

In trying to include everything it ends up saying very little. It’s a pity, because Latif shows considerable promise with her grasp of the visual language of cinema.

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Barry Levitt

Empire Magazine

Sep 18

3/5

Though The Man In My Basement juggles a few too many ideas, Nadia Latif has crafted an unnerving thriller with dynamite performances from leads Willem Dafoe and Corey Hawkins. 

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

Sep 17

4/5

This audacious feature debut, The Man In My Basement, from the Sudanese-British theatre director Nadia Latif belongs to the Henry James school — deviously, wickedly so.

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John Serba

Decider

Oct 14

Fascinating, yes. But fulfilling? Not quite. There’s much to appreciate in The Man in My Basement, but it just doesn’t pay on its promise.

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Marlon Wallace

The M Report (WBOC.com)

Oct 9

...there appears to be some racial guilt that sprang from initial racial animus with which this film is somewhat grappling. Strangely, I don't think the film spends enough time with Anniston [Willem Dafoe's character] to sell that aspect.

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John Stark

Mac the Movie Guy

Oct 4

61/100

Willem Dafoe is once again perfectly cast as an eccentric wildcard, and Corey Hawkins gives one of his best performances.

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Norm V

Sep 15

Still unable to connect history to the man in the basement experience.

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metalliphil

Sep 14

Interesting storytelling and solid acting w a decent build up that didnt end up revealing anything to the audience they dont already know, so the ending ends up half hearted.

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Jeffrey P

6d

Drags a bit in the beginning and other spots with a few too many elements that aren’t particularly relevant to the central plot; the unusual, awkward circumstances are adequately performed but it’s too spotty and never gets crazy and twisted enough. It has some debatabe subjects throughout but it’s all too loosely strung together.

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Paul D.

@pdecirce Nov 30

Well intentioned, well acted, but the only thing scary about this mis-fire is its tedious running time.

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Wendy W.

@Beasley Nov 24

Well thats 2 hrs of my life ill never get back. It was intriguing at first. I kept waiting for the climax. Total let down. I have no idea what significance the guy in the basement had or why he was there. No clue why the main character ended up where he did in the last scene. I would not recommend this to anyone.

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Al P

@BoosterAp Nov 23

I just cant recommend it. Didnt make sense. Build up of nothing. Thought it was going somewhere and be creepy but...

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Nadia Latif

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Corey Hawkins

Charles Blakey

Willem Dafoe

Anniston Bennet

Anna Diop

Narciss Gully

Jonathan Ajayi

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The Man in My Basement: Trailer 1

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The Man in My Basement: Teaser Trailer

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Synopsis

In the African American neighborhood of Sag Harbor, New York, Charles Blakey (Corey Hawkins) is out of work, out of luck and on the verge of foreclosure on his ancestral home. A knock on the door from a mysterious businessman, Anniston Bennet (Willem Dafoe), brings a bizarre and lucrative proposition; rent his dusty stand-up basement out for the summer and receive enough money to clear his debts for good. Once Charles accepts, he finds himself led down a terrifying path that confronts his family's ghosts and locks the men in a terrifying puzzle, at the heart of it race, the source of their traumas and the root of all evil.

Director: Nadia Latif
Producer: Dave Bishop, Diane Houslin, John Giwa-Amu, Len Rowles
Screenwriter: Nadia Latif, Walter Mosley
Distributor: Hulu
Production Co: Andscape
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 12, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 25, 2025
Runtime: 1h 55m

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