'

The Ugly Stepsister

Play trailer

1:48

The Ugly Stepsister

Released Apr 18

1h 45m

Horror

Comedy

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

111 Reviews

86%

Popcornmeter

50+ Verified Ratings

In a twisted take on the classic Cinderella story, 'The Ugly Stepsister' follows Elvira as she battles to compete with her insanely beautiful stepsister. In a fairy-tale kingdom where beauty is a brutal business, Elvira will go to any lengths to catch the Prince's eye. 'The Ugly Stepsister' is the gory tale of the blood and sweat, grit and gold that goes into making Elvira the belle of the ball.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

Taking a hammer and chisel to a quintessential fairy tale, The Ugly Stepsister's masterful application of gore and subversion are the stuff that nightmares are made of.

Read Critics Reviews

Amy Nicholson

FilmWeek (LAist)

I really loved the lead performance, this sister who is really committed to try and do everything right.

May 20, 2025

Full Review

Kevin Maher

Times (UK)

That’s impressive — 30 years of film criticism and this is the first time that I’ve had to turn away from the screen for fear of retching.

Rated: 3/5

Apr 28, 2025

Full Review

Hannah Strong

Little White Lies

The film’s creative gore alone cannot paper over the ultimate flimsiness of Blichfeldt’s concept, which amounts to an adolescent scrawl of fairytale satire.

Rated: 2/5

Apr 25, 2025

Full Review

Trace Thurman

Horror Queers Podcast

Not for the squeamish, Emilie Blichfeldt's The Ugly Stepsister is one twisted and subversive fairy tale.

Rated: 3.5/5

May 28, 2025

Full Review

Xero Gravity

Big Gold Belt Media

It’s taking all my strength to not crash just at the thought of how delightfully messed up this is. I’m able to have this visceral reaction days after screening because of the way all the pieces of the puzzle came together for this production.

Rated: 5/5

May 23, 2025

Full Review

Carla Hay

Culture Mix

Beyond the intentionally sickening body horror in The Ugly Stepsister, this well-made version of the Cinderella fairy tale is a dark and clever satire of painful extremes some women go to for beauty and wealth.

May 21, 2025

Full Review

Read all reviews

Ben W

Definitely a great watch. I had fun. Lightly touches on the body horror genre, but keeps itself tame enough to be digestible for a wider audience.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/14/25

Full Review

Adrianna

wasn't prepared to see a movie that isn't in English. it was really well written, and the acting is amazing. it was nice to see a different pov of the class fairytale that we know as cinderella.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/26/25

Full Review

Elaine W

One of the BEST movies of 2025 so far!!!! So creative, unique, fantastical! Loved it!!! Great “Cinderella” adaptation!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/24/25

Full Review

Yue

amazing. fans of the substance must see

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/23/25

Full Review

Shelbelw

Just got back from seeing The Ugly Stepsister and wanted to leave my two cents. No Spoilers. To be honest, this portrays such a female experience from start to finish that I'm not sure how many men are actually going to appreciate this movie. It is exquisitely tragic, beautifully filmed, and the lead actress deserves an Oscar. Her character arc from wide-eyed hopeful innocent to what she turns into is so amazing. The micro expressions on her face show every thought and feeling as if we were in her head. The body horror is good. There was not much the camera pulled away from. And at one point I actually gagged. I'm looking forward to rewatching this to appreciate the journey. Two severed big toes up from this girl.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

04/22/25

Full Review

BaileysHorrors on YT

Sick and twisted, with beautiful visuals.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/22/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Emilie Blichfeldt

Director

Lea Myren

Elvira

Thea Sofie Loch Næss

Askepott

Ane Dahl Torp

Stepmother

Flo Fagerli

Alma

Isac Calmroth

Prince Julian

The Ugly Stepsister: Exclusive Trailer

1:48

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

In a twisted take on the classic Cinderella story, 'The Ugly Stepsister' follows Elvira as she battles to compete with her insanely beautiful stepsister. In a fairy-tale kingdom where beauty is a brutal business, Elvira will go to any lengths to catch the Prince's eye. 'The Ugly Stepsister' is the gory tale of the blood and sweat, grit and gold that goes into making Elvira the belle of the ball.

Director: Emilie Blichfeldt
Producer: Maria Ekerhovd
Screenwriter: Emilie Blichfeldt, Emilie Blichfeldt
Distributor: IFC Films
Production Co: Mer Film
Genre: Horror, Comedy
Original Language: Norwegian
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 18, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 9, 2025
Box Office (Gross USA): $306.8K
Runtime: 1h 45m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.66:1)

Most Popular at Home Now