Daddy’s Deadly Secret (2024 Lifetime)
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Cast: Steve Byers, Sarah Allen
Director: Sean Cisterna,
Writer(s): Leo McGuigan
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DonateDonate monthlyDonate yearlySynopsis (via Lifetime)
Inspired by actual events. Ever since their divorce, Richard and Ellie have enjoyed an amicable relationship as they co-parent their daughter Abigail. Richard has even found love again, in the form of his new fiancee Caroline. Everything changes when Abigail doesn’t return from school one day. A call to Ellie reveals a terrifying truth; Abigail is missing. As Richard and Caroline try to uncover what happened to the little girl, they soon discover she may never have existed at all. Starring Sarah Allen, and Steve Byers (2024).
Recap/Wine Thoughts
The movie starts with a stepmother and daughter bucking gender roles and playing catch in the backyard. Caroline is the stepmother of the year and spends a lot of time with Abigail. Richard is impressed with “Daddy’s Second Wife” and compliments Caroline on her parenting skills. Caroline has trouble having a baby alone, but he promises to have a bunch of kids with her.
Richard has sister, Darla, is a deadbeat and has gone missing ever since he filed a restraining order against his sister.
Caroline watches murder shows but is interrupted by a call from a client, Beth, who doesn’t have boundaries. Caroline asks her if they can stop doing house calls and meet in Caroline’s home office. Beth is grieving a friendship and has a cabinet full of stuffed animals.
Richard drops his daughter, Abigal, off at her mother, Ellie’s, house, and husband/stepdad Doug, is there. There is no ill will between the men, and they even work on a deal with house zoning or something. Ellie, on the other hand, is having a nervous breakdown and tossing back pills.
Caroline’s home office is in the front of the house and on full display from a large glass window. The whole house is very modern, and I’m pretty sure it is the same house from A Simple Favor. So it is strange when Abigail doesn’t come home from swim practice. She isn’t at Ellie’s house either. The couples call the police.
Ellie and Doug admit that Abilgail has been hanging out with older girls at the fairgrounds. Abigail lashed out and scratched Ellie when she told her not to take the bus with older girls.
The dads, Doug and Richard, talk to the teacher, and she tells them that she noticed that Abigail has been hanging out with older girls. They call themselves “The Runaway Girls,” Abigail draws pictures of them hanging out at the old convent.
Caroline and Richard go to the convent and find a girl who looks like Abigail. They chase her down, and it is one of the Runaway Girls. The police interview the girls and organize a search party, but there is no sign of Abigail. They put up missing signs, and a woman named Marianne, who is also the crossing guard?, tells Caroline her daughter went missing ten years ago, so she knows what they are going through.
Beth leaves the house, and Caroline chases her through the police station. Beth grabs Caroline’s box cutter and screams about Abigail. Then Richard rushes up and is surprised to see Beth because Beth is his estranged sister, Darla!!!!!!!
The doctor calls Caroline and tells her that they have been having trouble having a baby because Richard has a history of opioids and was in rehab for drug addiction. This affected his fertility, and there was no way Abigail could be his daughter. When she confronts him later, Richard says he didn’t tell her because that is not who he is anymore.
The police detective uncovers some lies, too. Abigail’s social security number belongs to a woman who died 15 years ago. The Detective tells them that Abigail doesn’t exist and accuses them of lying. The couple talks to Ellie, and she literally runs away and into a gate.
Ellie isn’t Abigail’s mother, and Richard isn’t the father. Ellie lied about the pregnancy, and the lie spun out of control. Ellie met Doug, a single father, and they decided to lie to collect child support. (And so Ellie could keep Doug in her life.)
The Detective, who literally carries a coffee mug the whole movie, works with Caroline to piece things together.
Caroline finds a bunch of research that Abigail had done into a murder case involving the crossing guard Marianne. She goes to talk to Gail and asks her some questions. The pipes make some noise, and Caroline finds Abigail sleeping in the guest room. Caroline tries to leave, but her coffee has been drugged, and she passes out.
Marianne locks Caroline in a room and turns off her phone. Abigail wakes up and hears the banging, but Marianne tells her not to worry about it! Caroline continues to knock to get Abigail’s attention. Caroline tells Abigail to bust open the door. They try to escape, but Marianne isn’t having it and punches Caroline in the face. Then, she tapes Caroline to a chair to keep her daughter safe.
Doug took his daughter from Marianne, and she has been searching for them ever since. Darla pieced everything together and found Marianne. They worked together to get Abigail back. It’s all very complicated! While they are explaining all these things Abigail sneaks out a window and runs to the horse stables to call for help. (Not the brightest plan, Horses can’t use phones.)
Richard notices that Caroline and her car are missing and feels like something is wrong. Doug and Ellie help look for her. They get a call from Abigail and rush to rescue her, but totally forget about Caroline, who is having a drop-dead knife fight with Marianne.
Doug and Richard rush in and knock Marainne out as she wields the knife. Marianne lies on the floor and tells Caroline that Abigail isn’t safe with Doug.
Caroline recuperates by making a charcuterie board and drinking wine from a fancy decanter. She can’t put what Marianne said out of her mind and worries about Abigail being alone with Doug. Abigail opens up about Doug’s abusive relationship with Ellie.
Caroline talks with Ellie in the bathroom and demands to know the truth about Doug.
Doug goes full-on Lifetime Villian and admits to killing the person in the true crime show and being abusive to Marianne and Ellie. Richard wakes up and tries to grab Doug’s knife. Caroline smashes him over the head with a vase.
Richard and Caroline adopt. Ellie serves in community service, and Marianne and Doug are in jail.
Side Note/Stray Thoughts
Wedding season on LMN, I can’t wait!
This movie tried to string too many things together. Maybe cut one of them, and it would have been more satisfying.
Ellie wearing oversized clothes was an abuse tell from the get-go.
Overall rating
Numbers of Kills: None ( knives)
Enjoyment Level (1-5 scale)
🍷🍷 (2 Glasses of Wine)
Should you watch it?
Pour it up! (Give it a shot)
Put a Cork in It (Skip It)
What did you think of the movie? Let me know in the comments or on social media @LifetimeUncorked & @patrickmiguel
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*Photo Credit: © 2024 Lifetime® | A+E Networks®
Lol there was one kill! (Darla aka Beth)
Lol there was one kill! Darla aka Beth
I totally missed that somehow! Thank you! 🙏🏽
Why did we even need the Darla storyline 🤪
The story was too convoluted! Could not tell from start to finish what was happening. Who writes these over complicated scripts?