Pretty Lethal (2026): When Ballet Turns Brutal
You've heard the phrase “If looks could kill,” but have you heard “If dancing could kill?” Pretty Lethal takes that idea and runs with it.

Twelve years ago Anya and Zhenya had a daughter, Nadya. They were very young, and their life soon became a problem. Zhenya ended up in jail, and Anya and Nadya ended up living with Zhenyas family. During the twelve years that have passed, Anya has done quite a lot of changes in her own and Nadya’s life, some of them involving Zhenya. The first time Zhenya went to jail – for beating Anya – he didn’t have to stay that long. But the second time he was sentenced to four years, for rape. During most of the twelve years Anya has worked with Zhenyas mother in their shoemaker’s workshop. Zhenyas father, a retired policeman, has come and gone in the shop, taken care of his granddaughter, but also had a relationship with Anya. When Sasha, Zhenya’s father, beats Anya and ends up in prison, Anya finally leaves Zhenyas family.
You've heard the phrase “If looks could kill,” but have you heard “If dancing could kill?” Pretty Lethal takes that idea and runs with it.
I write for a diversity-focused film review blog, so I’ll be honest: I really wanted to like Pretty Lethal. Starring Maddie Ziegler, Lana Condor, Iris Apatow, Avantika, and Millicent Simmonds, Amazon Prime’s new thriller seemed like it would be a girl power movie about dancers with a horror action twist. Sort of a Suspiria for teens. But with shallow and unlikeable characters, a confusing plot, an overreliance on violence, and cringey dialogue, any fun the movie started out with was quickly lost. What was left was a faint echo of greater horror movies about dancers made before.
Two Distant Strangers (2020) centers around Carter James (Joey Bada$$) as he tries to get back home to his pitbull, Jeter, after spending a night at the apartment of his date Perri (Zaria Simone). What gets in the way of Carter reuniting with his dog is that every time he tries to leave Perri’s apartment, he is killed by police and wakes up back in her bed in a never-ending cycle. It addresses the issue of police brutality which rightly has been in the public eye more and more with the unjust deaths caused at the hands of law enforcement.
This movie will always resonate with queer people, for as long as queer people exist.
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