As the song goes,“Secrets (secrets) are no fun. Secrets (secrets) hurt someone.”
These lyrics can certainly apply to 2021’s high schoolslasher film from director Patrick Brice, with powerhouse producers Shawn Levy and James Wan. The gory Netflix offeringThere’s Someone Inside Your Houseis adapted from the 2017 novel by Stephanie Perkins. Led by actors Sydney Park (The Walking Dead) and Théodore Pellerin (Never Rarely Sometimes Always), the mysterious tale follows a senior transfer student from Hawaii who finds herself at the center of gruesome murder cases in her newly acquainted Nebraska town.It premiered at Fantastic Fest in Septemberand dropped on Netflix just in time for Halloween.
Somewhat reminiscent of the ’90s hitsScreamandI Know What You Did Last Summer, the spooky popcorn flick is riddled with blood and teen partying. And while the movie’s conclusion is visually striking — with the killer being revealed in a surprising twist against the backdrop of a blazing cornfield — the film was met with mixed reviews by critics and viewers. Butslasher flicks have spawned their fair share of franchisesover the years. Could there be a sequel toThere’s Someone Inside Your Housebe in order?
Let’s take a closer look at the ending, as well as the story’s potential future.
Who Were The Suspects?
First, let’s look at the story’s prime serial killer candidates. In the story, the countdown to graduation begins as certain students are stalked by someone who aims to their darkest secrets to the public, all the while terrorizing the selected victims under a life-like mask of each victim’s face. With a mysterious past of her own, our film’s protagonist Makani (played by Park) must discover the killer’s identity with the help of her new friends before it’s too late.
First, there’s Caleb — the first suspect whose football teammates and classmates eye him suspiciously. His teammate Jackson, who bullied Caleb in the past, is stalked around his otherwise empty house in the film’s opening, finally falling victim to a graphic Achille’s tendon slashing. The killer then alerted the entire town to Jackson’s bullying of Caleb.
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Then there’s Ollie (played by Pellerin), the class outcast whose classmates are quick to blame due to his shady past surrounding his parents. Students even tag his locker “Murderer” in the juicy second act (see cover image above). Zach Sandford (Dale Whibley), whose wealthy father is bankrupting the town, also points the finger at Ollie because Ollie’s brother is in law enforcement and could have helped conceal the deeds. Zach also points the finger at his own father, however, given their troubled relationship and the fact that his dad could have killed Jackson to obtain the family’s land.
Who Was The Real Killer?
In the film’s epic finale, Zach’s own corn farm is set on fire. His friends arrive to save him, with Ollie and Makani driving through the maze to clear a path. When they enter the maze, they discover Zach standing in front of his own father, wearing a mask similar to his father’s face. He ultimately stabs his father’s chest, leaving Makani and Ollie stunned and unable to comprehend how Zach is the killer.
In a frantic fury, Zach explains to them how he’s always been mocked for being wealthy, as his dad was one of the town’s most powerful citizens. However, because Zach belonged to a wealthy class, others treated him as if it was his fault, so he wanted to show people that they, too, were two-faced and wore masks all the time.
Zach also claims that he was unable to erase his family name from his identity. It wasn’t his fault that he was born to a wealthy family. However, the people he had killed could easily own up to their mistakes and their identity, but they decided to put on a fake mask and pretend they were free of any secrets. The climactic sequence ends with Makani killing Zach and helping the injured Ollie out of the maze. The story then flash-forwards to a seemingly happy graduation ceremony…
Will There Be A Sequel?
Netflix already has an extensive library of sequels to its original films — and there are quite a few in development. As forThere’s Someone Inside Your House, however, there don’t appear to be any plans for a sequel at this time. The movie doesn’t end in a cliffhanger, and there isn’t a second book by Perkins, unfortunately.
Of course, if the original film continues on Netflix with impressive viewership numbers, the streaming giant might have to just bite the bullet and produce a follow-up. We’ll have to wait and see, but please check back here for any updates as they come in.
