Other Mommy (2026): cast, story, release date and box office

Other Mommy at a glance

Other Mommy (2026) is a supernatural psychological horror film directed by Rob Savage. It is based on the 2024 novel Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman. The film stars Jessica Chastain and is released by Universal Pictures. It premiered in the United States on October 9, 2026.

The story

Seven-year-old Isabela Martin, nicknamed Bela, struggles to adjust to school and the growing distance between her parents. Ursula, a corporate mother, is consumed by her career, while Russell, her husband, is unemployed and spends much of his time caring for Bela. Bela begins encountering a supernatural entity that resembles her mother, which she calls 'Other Mommy.' The entity repeatedly asks to be let into her heart.

Other Mommy chases Bela past her bedroom, warps the room's layout, vanishes guests during a family gathering, hoists Bela up to the ceiling, and tries to breach her body. Bela drives it off with a punch and drops back into the room. Bela is moved to live with Frank, a friend of Ursula's.

While at Frank's, Bela finds Ursula's contact lens case, prompting Russell to suspect an affair. That night, Other Mommy manipulates Bela into wishing Frank out of their lives and then kills Frank in front of the family. After fleeing to a mall restaurant, Other Mommy strikes once more, dragging Bela from the play zone to her room and finally to a lake below a hilltop mansion. The entity informs Bela that Ursula had no intention of her being born, then brings her back to the family's vehicle.

The family takes her to her grandmother Ruth, who has experience fighting ghosts. Ruth takes them in and arranges for ghost hunters to discover Other Mommy is a trickster demon aiming to 'carnate' into Bela and control her life. Yet, it requires Bela’s consent to proceed. During a séance, the investigators summon the entity but prove powerless and are killed. They flee once more when the entity puts Bela under threat.

Resolving to no longer flee, the family goes back to their home to face Other Mommy. Their weapons prove ineffective, and they barricade themselves in the basement. There, Ursula admits she has been trying to protect Bela from the entity by hiding its presence.

Cast and characters

• Jessica Chastain as Ursula Martin, Bela's mother
• Arabella Olivia Clark as Isabela Martin, Bela, the daughter