The Girl on the Train (2016)
12-month trend
12-month trend
Monthly article views
2025-09 to 2026-08
An alcoholic woman becomes entangled in a missing person investigation that forces her to confront her own fractured memories.
The story
After losing her job and her marriage, recovering alcoholic Rachel Watson spends every day aimlessly riding a train into New York City. She fixates on the lives of her ex-husband Tom, his new wife Anna, and their neighbors, Scott and Megan Hipwell. Megan worked for Tom and Anna as a nanny for their baby Evie, but had recently quit. One afternoon, Rachel spots Megan in a compromising situation. When Megan is reported missing, Rachel is questioned by Detective Riley as she was seen in the vicinity. Rachel's attempt to find the truth leads her into a web of secrets involving the people she observes from her train ride.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Rachel Watson, an alcoholic and divorcee, becomes obsessed with the lives of her ex-husband Tom and his new wife Anna while riding a train to New York. When she witnesses a confrontation involving Megan, a former nanny for the couple, Megan goes missing. Rachel's investigation leads her to believe Megan's disappearance is linked to her neighbor Scott or a psychiatrist, Dr. Kamal Abdic. However, Rachel's own memory is clouded by alcohol-induced blackouts. She eventually discovers that Tom has been manipulating her memories and was physically abusive. The truth reveals that Tom was the one who harmed Megan. In a final confrontation, Rachel and Anna realize Tom's true nature and kill him in self-defense. The film ends with a sober Rachel finding a sense of peace while traveling on the train.
- First release year
- 2016
- Runtime (minutes)
- 112
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Tate Taylor
- Writers
- Erin Cressida Wilson · writer
- Cast and characters
- Emily Blunt · Rachel; Rebecca Ferguson · Anna; Haley Bennett · Megan; Justin Theroux · Tom; Luke Evans · Scott; Allison Janney · Detective; Édgar Ramírez · Dr. Kamal Abdic; Lisa Kudrow · Martha
- Genres
- psychological thriller; mystery drama; mystery; mystery thriller
- Themes
- alcoholism; memory; domestic abuse; missing persons
- Tone and mood
- suspenseful; melodramatic
- Premise and plot tags
- mystery; thriller; unreliable narrator; alcoholism
- Source material / true-story basis
- 2015 novel by Paula Hawkins
- Content notes
- alcoholism
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, though Emily Blunt received several award nominations.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 44% · scale: percentage · review count: 307; Metacritic · score: 48 · scale: 100 · review count: 49; IGN · score: 5.5 · scale: 10
- Awards and nominations
- Lead Actress · Screen Actors Guild Awards · Nomination; Lead Actress · British Academy Film Awards · Nomination
- Production trivia
- A Hindi remake was released in 2021.; A cameo by Paula Hawkins was cut from the film.; The setting was moved from London to New York during development.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
Your lists
Loading your lists…