This fractured fairy tale is more horrific than you thought.

Join BP, Coop and Justin as we do a deep dive review of the 2025 Norwegian satirical, black comedy, body horror film ‘The Ugly Stepsister’ (Den Stygge Stesøsteren), written and directed by Emilie Blichfeldt, in her feature film directorial debut.

⚠️ Spoiler Warning
This discussion contains full spoilers

An international production mostly in Norwegian, it is loosely based on the 19th century fairytale “Aschenputtel” by the Brothers Grimm, itself a retelling of the French fairy tale “Cinderella”; unlike most versions of the stories revolving around Cinderella, it focuses instead on one of her stepsisters who embarks on a grueling quest to capture the heart of a handsome prince. It stars Lea Myren, Thea Sofie Loch Næss, Ane Dahl Torp and Flo Fagerli.

The film had its world premiere as the opening film of the Midnight section of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on 23 January. It was also screened at the Panorama section of the 75th Berlin International Film Festival on 16 February. It was theatrically released in Norway on 7 March by Scanbox Entertainment, in Denmark on 28 May, and in Sweden on 13 June.

It was nominated for the Best Makeup and Hairstyling Award at the 98th Academy Awards.

The Ugly Stepsister is available to stream on Shudder.

Chapters
00:00 The Ugly Stepsister: Welcome to the Nightmare
01:35 First Impressions: A Surprisingly Brutal Cinderella Story
05:25 Why European Horror Hits Differently
06:45 Favourite Parts: Music, Alma & the Dreamlike Fairy Tale
10:30 The Horrifying Beauty Procedures
15:25 The Toe Scene: One of Horror’s Most Brutal Moments
17:45 Tapeworms, Gore & the Physical Effects
20:10 The Prince, the Ball & the Cruelty of the Characters
22:55 European Horror, Nudity & Why It Works
25:40 The Ball Scene: Editing, Suspense & Elvara’s Breakdown
28:40 Costumes, Makeup & the Real Cinderella Transformation
31:00 The Ballet Teacher, the Chocolate Scene & More Weirdness 34:20 The Darkest Part of the Story: Abuse & Beauty Standards
36:45 Least Favourite Parts: The Worms & Small Production Gripes 38:00 Music Choices & Inconsistent Colour Grading
40:00 Editing Problems & the Tapeworm Could Have Gone Further 42:00 Should The Ugly Stepsister Be Remade?
44:00 Ryan Murphy, The Substance & Hollywood’s Adaptation Problem 46:00 Could Looksmaxxing Become a Body-Horror Movie?
48:00 Beauty Standards, Masculinity & the Modern Man
49:15 Ratings: Is The Ugly Stepsister a Horror Masterpiece?
50:50 Final Thoughts & Podcast Outro