From Speak No Evil to Master, horror had a phenomenal year at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. However, the one that stood out completely from the pack was the Nikyatu Jusu directed Nanny.
The film was big enough to win the US Dramatic Grand Jury Prize, making Jusu the first Black woman to ever earn the award. Following its historic festival run, Nanny was eventually picked up by both Amazon Studios and Blumhouse productions.
One of the most anticipated horror films to release this year, here’s everything we know about Nanny.
When is the Nanny release date?
Amazon Studios releases Nanny first in theaters on November 23 in US. Afterwards, Nanny hits Prime Video December 16.
Whether the movie is set to play in movie theaters in the UK is TBD, though we would presume it’ll be available on Prime Video everywhere as of December 16.
What is the plot of Nanny?
Here is the synopsis for Nanny:
"In this psychological horror fable of displacement, Aisha, a woman who recently emigrated from Senegal, is hired to care for the daughter of an affluent couple living in New York City. Haunted by the absence of the young son she left behind, Aisha hopes her new job will afford her the chance to bring him to the US, but becomes increasingly unsettled by the family’s volatile home life. As his arrival approaches, a violent presence begins to invade both her dreams and her reality, threatening the American dream she is painstakingly piecing together."
Speaking with Indiewire earlier this year, Jusu mentioned wanting to flip the horror genre on its head.
"I knew that I didn’t want to tell a straightforward genre story," Jusu said. "I wanted to remix this story of a domestic experience with genre. A lot of the films I love do that. I wanted to remix the American immigrant experience with genre. A lot of people have a way into that — whether you were raised by a nanny or your mother was one."
Nanny trailer
The official trailer for Nanny is available, check it out below:
Who is in the Nanny cast?
Us' star Anna Diop plays the lead role of Aisha. Michelle Monaghan (Echoes, The Craft: Legacy) and Morgan Spector(The Gilded Age) are the wealthy couple of Amy and Adam. Sinqua Walls (Friday Night Lights American Soul), Leslie Uggams(Deadpool) and Rose Decker (Mare of Easttown) star in supporting roles as well.
Nanny reviews — what critics are saying
So far, Nanny enjoys an 89% "Fresh" Rotten Tomatoes, with a critical conscious saying:
"Led by Anna Diop's strong central performance, the smartly disquieting Nanny is a promising debut for writer-director Nikyatu Jusu."
In a positive review from Essence Magazine, contributor Aramide Tinubu praised the film as "a wealth of solid performance and some exquisite cinematography,” while mentioning that “the themes of motherhood, exploitation and the falsehood of the American dream will undoubtedly spark conversation."
On Metacritic, the film has a score of 66. Contributor Lisa Wong Macabasco with The Guardian proclaiming that Nanny “packs a rather toothless punch” and “feels loosely assembled.”
