The Stepfather

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Nelson McCormick directs. Patrick Cady behind the camera. Charlie Clouser scores. Eric L. Beason cuts. Profitable at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in German, English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

• 1Released 17 years ago.
• 2Dialogue crosses 2 languages: German, English.
• 3Directed by Nelson McCormick, shot by Patrick Cady. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
• 4Original score by Charlie Clouser. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
• 5Editor Eric L. Beason shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
• 6Dylan Walsh and Sela Ward and Penn Badgley carry the top of the cast.
• 7Marketing tagline: "This fall, daddy's home.".
• 8IMDB entry: tt0814335 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
• 9Released under 24 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography

Patrick Cady

Original score

Charlie Clouser

Editing

Eric L. Beason

Production design

Steven J. Jordan

Costume design

Lyn Paolo

Makeup / hair

Stacey K. Black

Sound

Greg P. Russell

Stunt coordinator

Mike Smith

Runtime

101 min · 1h 41m

Aspect ratio (typical)

1.37:1 (Academy)

Status

Released

Budget

$20,000,000

Box office

$31,198,531

Return

156% of budget

Original language

EN

Certification (US)

PG-13

IMDB

The Stepfather (2009) ↗

Also by

Nelson McCormick

• 
  The Evidence

  2006 · ★ 8.7
• 
  House

  2004 · ★ 8.6
• 
  The Rookie

  2018 · ★ 8.5
• 
  Criminal Minds

  2005 · ★ 8.3
• 
  The West Wing

  1999 · ★ 8.3
• 
  Marvel's Daredevil

  2015 · ★ 8.2

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

• 

  ▶
  Stepfather Trailer - In Theaters 10/16

  Trailer · Official

Community reviews

What people are saying

• Wuchak2019-10-17
  ★ 7/10

  What if your stepfather is a psycho? After an amiable man (Dylan Walsh) slays his family he starts a new one under a different identity in Portland, Oregon, but his discerning stepson (Penn Badgley) picks up on his dark side. Sela Ward plays the psycho’s new fiancé while Amber Heard is on hand as the stepson’s girlfriend. "The Stepfather" (2009) is a solid crime drama/thriller with a bit o' slasher horror, a combination of the original film (1987) and its sequel (1989). All of the Stepfather flicks are loosely based on mass murderer John List. They contain elements of movies like "Psycho" (1960/1998) mixed with coming-of-age drama, like “Fright Night” (1985) and “Disturbia” (2007). Walsh effectively portrays the delusional titular character while Badgley is competent as the teen protagonist. Meanwhile the director takes every opportunity to show Heard in a bikini or underwear, but she’s way too thin to stir much interest despite her obvious attractiveness. She’s more appealing after she acquired some curves, e.g. as Mera in “Aquaman” (2018). At the end of the day this is an updated, slightly more compelling version of the first film and its sequel. There are just enough changes to make it worthwhile if you’re familiar with the prior flicks. On the downside, it’s a little predictable, but what else is new? The film runs 1 hour, 40 minutes, and was shot in Los Angeles & Santa Clarita, California (with studio work done in Culver City). GRADE: B+

  Read full review ↓

Production companies

Who made it

• 

  Screen Gems

  US

• MA

  Maverick Films

  US

• IM

  Imprint Pictures

  US

Key crew

• EditorEric L. Beason
• Executive ProducerJ.S. Cardone
• Executive ProducerRobert O. Green
• Executive ProducerJulie Meldal-Johnsen
• Executive ProducerGuy Oseary
• Executive ProducerMeredith Zamsky
• ProducerGreg Mooradian
• ProducerMark Morgan
• Production DesignSteven J. Jordan
• CastingLisa London
• CastingCatherine Stroud
• Art DirectionTim Eckel
• Set DecorationJulieann Getman
• StuntsDickey Beer
• Utility StuntsSean Christopher
• Utility StuntsCasey Adams
• StuntsGregory J. Barnett
• Stunt DoubleStacey Carino
• GafferDerrick Kolus
• Original Film WriterDonald E. Westlake
• Costume DesignLyn Paolo
• HairstylistStacey K. Black
• Key Makeup ArtistBernadette Beauvais
• Special Effects Makeup ArtistChristopher Allen Nelson

Themes & keywords

What it's about, really

• stepfather
• remake
• ominous

Release history · US

When it landed

• Theatrical2009-10-16PG-13

Also known as

International titles

• El PadrastroES
• Stepfather - Daddy ist da!DE
• Asesino en casaMX
• Asesino en CasaAR
• ПастрокътBG
• Le Beau-PèreCA
• The StepfatherCA
• OčuhHR
• OtcímCZ
• Le Beau-PèreFR
• O PatriosGR
• Ο πατριόςGR
• A MostohaapaHU
• Il Segreto di DavidIT
• ステップファーザー　殺人鬼の棲む家JP