Entertainment

Lifetime's 'The Nanny Is Watching' Will Make You Think Twice About Getting A Babysitter

by Rebecca Patton
Lifetime

The time has come once again for a new Lifetime movie about dangerous nannies. Because there's never enough, really. The network's latest is called The Nanny Is Watching, and it premieres on Sunday, July 15 at 8 p.m. ET. The movie is about a babysitter who starts spying on a new client, with drama obviously ensuing. Since the plot sounds realistic enough, it's definitely possible that Lifetime's The Nanny Is Watching is based on true events. Or is it just another addition to the network's collection of fictional thrillers?

Fortunately, it appears as though the plot was entirely fabricated and isn't based on real life, so you can rest easy if you have a nanny at home right this very minute watching your kids or something. There's actually a lot that's hard to believe in the movie when you think about it. The movie, which was originally called Nanny Surveillance, according to IMDb, is about the the Franklin family, who hires Rachel (Cinta Laura Kiehl) to help with their adopted daughter, Beth (Olivia Sembra). According to Lifetime's synopsis of the film, the couple decides to install a security system after a break-in. But the babysitter ends up using the family's surveillance system to spy on them. The twist? Beth is actually Rachel's biological daughter, and she desperately wants her back!

"If you try and come between me and my family again, I will deal with you myself," Mara warns Rachel in the trailer. But it doesn't look like she heeds her warning, because audiences see Rachel try to woo the husband, wield a kitchen knife, and throw various fits throughout the trailer. Not a great way to get a character reference for the next babysitting job, if you ask me.

While it might sound silly, The Nanny Is Watching is also a pretty wild ride, perfect for midsummer viewing. If dangerous au pairs are your preferred form of entertainment, Lifetime has more where that came from, too. Here are a few more nanny-centric TV movies to fill that "babysitter thriller" void in your life.

Devious Nanny (2018)

Lifetime

Not to be confused with the Lifetime show Devious Maids, Devious Nanny follows Elise (Michelle Borth) and Brian (Antonio Cupo), who hire a new babysitter named Amber (Olesya Rulin). However, when people start getting murdered, Amber starts looking suspicious. Or could somebody be framing her?

The Wrong Nanny (2017)

Lifetime

Caution: Nanny is closer to client than she appears! According to the film's IMDb synopsis, Stella Armstrong (Lindsay Hartley) employs Blake (Freya Tingley) to help with her twin baby boys. However, what Stella doesn't know is that Blake is the baby she gave up at birth, and now her abandoned daughter is out for revenge.

Nanny Killer (2018)

Lifetime

Who is trying to kill the babysitter? That's what this Lifetime movie seeks to find out, refreshingly flipping the killer nanny trope on its head. This time around, it's the kids who may be less innocent than they appear. Nanny Killer stars Morgan Obenreder as the titular nanny, Kate, as well as Danielle Bisutti and Tucker Meek. The film aired in April 2018, so perhaps it will return as a rerun sometime in the future.

The Good Nanny (2017)

Lifetime

Much like Nanny Killer, The Good Nanny is another original take on the dangerous babysitter cliché, with the parents in the hot seat this time. This TV movie centers around Summer Pratt (Briana Evigan), who discovers some troubling things about the family she's employed by. For one, the young girl, Sophie (Sophie Guest), has some strange tendencies, and her parents seem completely indifferent to them. What's going on behind-the-scenes, and could Sophie be in danger?

Nanny Seduction (2017)

Lifetime

Initially titled Missing Daughter, Nanny Seduction follows a babysitter named Alyssa (Valerie Azlynn), who begins taking care of an adopted girl named Riley. After Riley's dad (Wes Brown) rejects Alyssa's advances, however, she decides to steal to take his daughter in retribution. "You like hide-and-seek, right?" Alyssa asks her young ward in the trailer. "Well, we're going to hide out here and wait for your daddy to find us!" And, oh yeah — there's also the fact that Riley's biological mom keeps showing up outside their home, but interested viewers will have to watch the movie to figure out what happens with that.

So while change is an inevitable part of life, audiences can rest assured that Lifetime will continue to churn out white-knuckled, fictional thrillers about nannies (and families) who are not as they appear. Fortunately, Nanny Is Watching promises to be a worthy addition to Lifetime's babysitter canon, with more, assuredly, to come.