The Hand That Rocks the Cradle

1992 | Drama, Thriller, Stalker

Synopsis

After her sex offender husband gets caught in the act and kills himself, an embittered pregnant widow loses her child, and embarks on a mission of vengeance against one of her husband's victims and the woman's family.

Scores

Overall Score
80.8
Popularity Percentile (Year)
77.1%
Box Office Percentile (Year)
94.6%
Review Aggregate
64.9

Critic Consensus

70.5% Fresh • 44 critic reviews

Critic reception is mixed, with 70% of 44 logged reviews marked Fresh. Across reviews, critics repeatedly emphasize suspenseful, scary, thin plot. Common reservations focus on thin plot, even when reviewers praise standout elements.

suspensefulscarythin plotlightheartedgrittyrealisticfunnypsychologicalfamily-friendly

Cast

CastYearReported SalaryInflation AdjustedNotes
Annabella Sciorra1992$968,000$2,165,000(est)
Rebecca De Mornay1992$596,000$1,333,000(est)
Matt McCoy1992$449,000$1,003,000(est)
Ernie Hudson1992$367,000$820,000(est)

Aggregated Reviews

Rotten Tomatoes critic score67.0
RT critic review count54
Rotten Tomatoes audience score61.0
RT audience rating count25,000
IMDb rating6.7
IMDb votes51,895

Box Office ?

CategoryYearReportedInflation Adjusted
Domestic1992$88,036,680$196,843,241
International1992$35$78
Worldwide1992$88,036,720$196,843,330

Earnings / Profitability

Estimated net revenues and net expenses for films based on reported and estimated numbers. This income statement should be considered most viable for the first 24 months after the inital movie's release (ie after most lucrative pay windows).
CategoryYearReportedInflation Adjusted
Revenues
Theatrical Net Revenue1992$44,018,354$98,421,652
Digital Rentals ?1992N/AN/A
Digital Purchases ?1992N/AN/A
Physical Rentals ?1992$57,174,000$127,836,663
Physical Purchases ?1992$40,799,000$91,223,424
TV & Streaming Revenue1992$24,650,270$55,116,107
Total Revenues1992$166,641,624$372,597,846
Expenses
Budget ?1992$11,900,000$26,607,484
Print & Advertising (P&A) ?1992$14,371,000 (est)$32,132,450 (est)
Participations1992$24,996,000$55,889,132
Residuals ?1992$8,424,000$18,835,416
Interest & Overhead1992$2,380,000$5,321,497
Total Expenses1992$62,071,000$138,785,979
Movie Net Profit or Loss1992$104,570,624$233,811,868

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