The Bad Seed (1956)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
A mother begins to suspect that her pristine eight-year-old daughter might be a psychopathic killer.
The story
Kenneth and Christine Penmark dote on their eight-year-old daughter, Rhoda, who appears to be a pristine and proper child. When Kenneth leaves for military duty, a series of unsettling events occur, including the drowning of a schoolmate. Rhoda's teacher hints at the girl's involvement in the boy's death, and Christine discovers a medal hidden in Rhoda's belongings. As Christine investigates her daughter's behavior, she begins to fear that Rhoda's actions are not merely accidents but evidence of a deeper, more sinister nature.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Kenneth and Christine Penmark dote on their eight-year-old daughter, Rhoda. After Kenneth leaves for military duty, Rhoda's schoolmate Claude Daigle drowns. Rhoda's teacher, Miss Fern, suggests Rhoda was involved, and Christine finds Claude's medal in Rhoda's possession. Christine later learns she was adopted from a notorious Australian serial killer, fearing the genetic cause of Rhoda's sociopathy. Christine catches Rhoda disposing of tap shoes and learns Rhoda admitted to killing Claude for his medal and had previously murdered a neighbor in Wichita, Kansas. When the janitor, Leroy Jessup, confronts Rhoda about the truth, she locks him in the basement and sets his bedding on fire, burning him to death. Distraught, Christine gives Rhoda a lethal dose of sleeping pills and shoots herself in the head. Both survive, but Christine remains in a coma. Later, Rhoda attempts to retrieve the medal from the lake during a thunderstorm and is struck by lightning, causing her death.
- First release year
- 1956
- Runtime (minutes)
- 129
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Mervyn LeRoy
- Writers
- John Lee Mahin · screenplay
- Cast and characters
- Nancy Kelly · Christine Penmark; Patty McCormack · Rhoda Penmark; Henry Jones · Leroy Jessup; Eileen Heckart · Hortense Daigle; Evelyn Varden · Monica Breedlove; William Hopper · Col. Kenneth Penmark; Paul Fix · Richard Bravo; Jesse White · Emory Wages
- Genres
- psychological horror; thriller
- Themes
- nature vs nurture; sociopathy; juvenile delinquency
- Tone and mood
- psychological; horror; thriller
- Premise and plot tags
- psychopath; child villain; serial killer; horror
- Source material / true-story basis
- The Bad Seed by Maxwell Anderson (play) and William March (novel)
- Content notes
- adults only
- Reception
- The film was a large hit for Warner Bros., finishing among the top 20 box-office hits in the U.S. in 1956 and among the top ten in Britain. It received favorable reviews from critics.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 66%; Rotten Tomatoes · score: 7.1 · scale: 10
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…