Kidnapping My Own Daughter (2026 Lifetime Movie)
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Cast: Kathryn Kohut, Catherine Saindon, Jesse Collin,
Director: Max McGuire
Writer(s): Shawn Riopelle
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DonateDonate monthlyDonate yearlySynopsis (via Lifetime)
Working for the Department of Family and Child Services can be heartbreaking and thankless. When things go wrong, there can be devastating consequences. In our story, Fay Walden, a talented and dedicated social worker with DFCS is targeted by an angry and unbalanced woman, Tess Donnelly, who was deemed an unfit mother and had her daughter removed from her custody. Tess is taking her revenge and aiming at Fay
Recap/Wine Thoughts
Fay is a social worker who has the difficult job of conducting a DCFS inspection at a family’s home. She is a mother herself and works with struggling families to help them get back on the right path.
A couple, Harlow and Tess, stake out her office and follow Fay to carry out a plan that involves a taser and a knife. They wait until night to make their move.
Fay is none the wiser and enjoys dinner with her hot husband, Paul, who cooks exclusively in crock pots. He is also remodeling a nursery in hopes of convincing Fay to start a family. (A plan she isn’t into because she works with families falling apart all day!)
Tess and Harlow break into the house and kidnap her to help them bring back their daughter. Harlow ties up Paul and holds him as collateral, while Tess takes Fay to get her daughter back. Three years ago, DCFS took away Tess’s child, and her case worker was Margaret, Fay’s mentor. A fireworks ember fell on Tess’ daughter. When they went to the ER, the baby was taken away from teenage Tess.
At the DCFS office, Tess forces Fay to look for her file and takes out the security guard. When they don’t find what they are looking for, they go to Margaret’s home. Margaret explains that they smelled alcohol on her breath, and legally, Tess abandoned her daughter. The shock of the event sends Margaret into a panic, and the police arrive on the scene. Tess flees the scene.
Paul is also rescued, and Harlow is arrested. They all end up in the hospital, and this is where a normal Lifetime Movie would end, with Tess conning another family to save her daughter. THAT DOESN’T HAPPEN!
Margaret makes a frantic phone call to warn a Gay Dad making pancakes for his daughter, Millie, presumibly Tess’ daughter.
Fay and Paul look into past files that have been redacted, but Gay Dad beats them to the storage unit and steals the box on Tess Donnely and her case. Fay and Paul search through redacted files and don’t come up with much.
The Gay Dad breaks into their house to steal the rest of the files and stabs Paul. He tells Fay to let the whole thing go, or he will have to kill them both. Tess was watching the whole break-in from outside and burst in and hit Gay Dad with a tire iron. Stopping things from escalating further.
Fay hides Tess from the police and even gives her new clothes and some cereal. Tess sticks to her story and wants to prove that Margaret is a liar. Fay believes in the system, but can see it went awry this time. They work together on the files. They learn about a neighbor who has a video of what really happened with the fireworks and the baby.
Jacob is the Gay Dad, who unfortunately ISN’T gay. He has a wife named Clara, and they plan a spontaneous trip to get out of town ASAP. Probably to keep Millie away from her birthmother.
Margaret burns the video’s USB in her backyard as Fay visits to ask about the exact video. Margaret admits that she exchanged Millie for Jacob to provide her husband, George, with top-notch home care at the end of his life. Margaret hands over a USB copy of the video and promises to make a statement.
Not Gay Dad Jacob isn’t going to let that happen, and he scares Margaret so bad that her heart affliction takes over. Then he runs his car into Tess and Fay’s car and steals the USB back.
Fay ends up back in the hospital, and her husband, Paul, is not doing well from that stab wound. Tess, on the other hand, makes her way to Not Gay Dad Jacob for a final confrontation.
Tess sneaks into the house and looks at family photos. She looks for her daughter and finds Milly’s bedroom. Then she hears Milly playing and takes her with her. (The kid has never heard of stranger danger, apparently.) Tess is not a kidnapper, though, and can’t take her daughter away from the woman who is raising her. Tess almost gets away, but Clara sees her and screams for her husband.
Tess pleads and tells Clara what is REALLY going on, but Not Gay Dad Jacob isn’t going to let her just walk away. Fay shows up and takes him out with a croquet mallet as the police arrive.
Months later, after working through the DCFS system, Clara and Tess set up a meeting on a playground and Tess is reunited with her daughter. It is a sweet reunion.
Fay and Paul finally finish that nursery, and she is pregnant! Yay!
STRAY Thought
Is Tess Donnely related to Tanya Donnely?
Overall rating
Number of Kills: 🔪🔪 ( 2 knives)
Enjoyment Level (1-5 scale)
🍷🍷🍷 (3 Glasses of Wine)
Lifetime Tropes:
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 at @LifetimeUncorked and @patrickmiguel.
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