I Thought My Husband’s Wife Was Dead (2024 Lifetime)
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Cast: LeToya Luckett, Sherilyn Allen
Director: Troy Scott
Writer(s): Tamara Gregory
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DonateDonate monthlyDonate yearlySynopsis (via Lifetime)
I Thought My Husband’s Wife Was Dead centers on beautiful wife and expectant mother Lola Winters (Sherilyn Allen) who seems to have it all—the big house, a dashing husband Leo Winters (Jamall Johnson), and a thriving restaurant business. But Lola’s seemingly perfect life is interrupted when a ghost from the past Tori (LeToya Luckett) suddenly shows up at her doorstep in search of her husband Leo, after having gone missing for 5 years and being declared dead. Tensions rise and lives are turned upside down as Tori’s unexpected return leaves everyone questioning her motives and why she hasn’t gone to the police. Determined to start a new life, Tori demands that the Winters pay her hundreds of thousands of dollars, but before leaving town, a bombshell revelation exposes even more dark and shocking secrets.
Recap/Wine Thoughts
Lalya is pregnant and prepping the nursery while talking on the phone to her husband, Leo. He is stuffing his face and doing push-ups. As they talk, the doorbell rings. Vicky Knight bangs on the door, demanding to speak to Leo. The only problem is Vicky has been dead for five years.
Layla grabs a gun and rubs her belly while telling her child that there are bad people in this world. (She is equally upset about breaking a nail as she is with the run-in with a dead ex-wife.)
Vicky looks wild because she was kidnapped and tortured for years. (She dropped this line casually while browsing the internet for jobs, and we received no more information.) Vicky is trying to get her life back on track. She almost lands a job at a hair salon and tells the owner, Corrine, that she needs to be off the books, so the owner won’t hire her, but she does give her a, MAKEOVER!!!!!
Layla gets her nails fixed at the salon because Leo hates it when she is unkempt. Layla is up for a real housewife spot and is rattled when she sees Vicky working in the back. Vicky goes into labor, and it is Layla who takes her to the doctor. The doctor tells Vicky to stay away from STRESS.
Speaking of stress, we see through flashbacks that Vicky was kidnapped while on a jog and was held captive for years. She was left for dead and found by some hippies who nursed her back to health. Vicky went to the police, but they thought she was a junkie. No one believed her story, so Vicky decided to find Leo, her only family member. Layla can relate; she has no family, and Leo is all she has.
Leo comes home from eating waffles and doing push-ups and is surprised to see his dead wife! Vicky is surprised, too, and slashes him with a knife, mistaking him for an intruder. (We all know he is the “monster” who kidnapped Vicky, right?) His first question is, “How did you find us?!?”
Vicky is overwhelmed by the lavish lifestyle Leo and Layla live. She isn’t shy about asking Leo for some cash, a car, and a dinner date to discuss her share of what is rightfully hers.
Yo, does Leo have an eating disorder? He scarfs food in his car in a very random scene and then goes to the gym.
Vicky meets the couple at their fancy (but fledgling) restaurant and tells Leo that she wants the money Leo claimed from her life insurance, a phone, a fake ID, and 5K a week to help turn the restaurant around. (Vicky is a good cook, apparently.) Mark, the restaurant manager, is impressed with Vicky’s menu changes. (He also kind of flirts with her.)
Since Vicky doesn’t have health insurance. (Something I am currently struggling with.) The doctor and nurse are disturbed by the damage done to Vicky’s body when she was kidnapped.
Vicky finds out that Leo took out a two-million-dollar life insurance policy. Leo takes it out on her; she demands more money and suggests that Leo sell his car. Leo is adamant that he will not sell his car, not even for his unborn child. (Leo doesn’t even seem to want to have a child and is almost jealous of the attention the baby is getting from Layla.)
Mark starts showing up outside the restaurant, like outside of therapy. It creeps Vicky out, and she looks him up online, finding a video of Mark in the search for Vicky when she went missing. Mark seems desperate for friends. She sees that Mark has a specific obsession with missing women. He recognizes Vicky’s lateness and promises to keep it a secret.
Layla goes into labor and has the baby; Vicky takes her to the hospital and sees Leo in the waiting room. She demands the money again and tells Leo that she remembers everything, including him being “the monster.” She threatens to go to the police if he doesn’t follow through.
Leo pays up and tells Vicky that he should have killed her when he had the chance. Vicky spits at him and tells Leo that she will never forgive him. Vicky rides off with the money and Leo’s car while singing backup vocals, but then she gets a call from Mark, who has been looking into Leo’s financial situation. Leo has taken off large life insurance policies for Layla and the baby.
Vicky rushes home to warn Layla and the baby. She shows her the scars on her body and Leo’s initials carved into her stomach. Layla is horrified, but not for the reasons you’d think. Layla orchestrated the whole thing and wanted Leo to kill her, but since Leo failed, Layla will have to take matters into her own hands and claim that Vicky is an obsessed stalker.
Layla stabs Leo and tells him that she took a three million policy out on him. As Leo lies on the ground, Vicky runs in and thinks that Layla has been attacked. Layla knocks Vicky out and ties her up.
We finally get the villain monologue, Scooby Style. Layla was having an affair with Leo before Vicky went missing. She thought up the kidnapping and is now going to set up a murder-suicide so Layla can collect her insurance. Before getting to the murder, the ladies share a drink. Vicky kicks Layla in the vagina, and they get into a wig-snatching brawl as the police rush in. (Mark called the police.)
Vicky visits Layla in jail and gloats about taking everything from her, well, everything, including the baby. She records the whole thing on a hidden camera for The Real Housewives spot that she has stolen from Vicky, along with everything. Vicky has a change of heart and wants to live her own best life, not Laylas.
Side Note/Stray Thoughts
Out of all of Destiny’s Children, LeToya Luckett is low-key the best actress. (I have yet to see Michelle Williams on Broadway, tho!)
The script here was repetitive and meandering; it could have been tightened up.
I liked the stylistic choices the director made with music and editing.
Based on Unmissing by Minka Kent
Overall rating
Number of Kills: 🔪 (1 knife)
Enjoyment Level (1-5 scale)
🍷🍷🍷 (3 Glasses of Wine)
Should you watch it? Yes. Pour it Up (Give it a shot!)
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
This movie gave off serious Tubi vibes. Very hard to follow plot plus stupid reveal at the end. Only giving it five stars for LaToya and Blac China. Otherwise it would be at least a two.
Latoya is low-key a good actress!
LaToya is really good. I knew who was involced from the get go. But a fun ride whilst baking. A must when I bake
This is a terrible recap of this movie! Several inaccuracies such as the husband’s and wife’s last name, the salon owner does hire Tori, and she wasn’t prepping the nursery when she was on the phone with her husband.
The movie was pretty predictable and a bit corny; typical Lifetime/Tubi fodder, but it was a decent watch, mainly because of Letoya, I like her in most anything she does.
Corny movies serve as mindless watches when you just want something to fall asleep to. Glad I watched it!