Crazy Old Lady is one of the most intense horror movies of 2026.
Directed and written by Martín Mauregui, it tells the story of a man asked by his ex girlfriend to care temporarily for her senile mother Alicia. But what starts as a wellness check turns into terror as Alicia won’t let him leave. She’s convinced he’s someone else. And the more you watch, the more you realize that her trapping him in her house is the least of his problems.
Fangirlish sat down to speak with Mauregui about Crazy Old Lady, starring the iconic actress Carmen Maura. Because for those who have watched her in everything from Land of Women or Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, this role is unlike any that Maura has done. And it’s because of the writing and directing done by Mauregui.
When it comes to the idea, the initial spark for this movie, Mauregui said it came from a real and lived human experience. He said, “A friend of mine had a very similar experience to the first scene of the movie. She was in the car, she was far away on the road, and suddenly her mother called her. And she starts to get a little crazy.”
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In the film, Alicia’s daughter Laura is played by Agustina Liendo. While traveling with her own daughter, Alicia calls Laura over and over. She’s asking for a recipe without realizing that she’s not remembering all the other calls. And Laura continues picking up because what else are you supposed to do when your mother is in the beginning stages of dementia and coming to grips with something she can’t control?
Mauregui continued talking about the inspiration for this film and said, “[My friends mother] starts talking to her about a husband she had before her father, who didn’t exist. But at the same time, beyond the consternation that it generates to see your parents, [you worry about] how they begin to need other types of care. And I wondered what was behind that other husband? What story could there be?”
And Crazy Old Lady was born.
Worried about her mother, Laura asks an ex-boyfriend who lives nearby to check on her mother in Crazy Old Lady. Played by Daniel Hendler, Pedro thinks things are ok, even if Alicia is acting a little different. But one thing leads to another and he ends up tied to a chair, leading to a horrifying night that might be hard for some viewers to watch.
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When it comes to Alicia’s mind and the state that she’s in that leads her to such violence in Crazy Old Lady, Mauregui said, “She’s a mother of a daughter. She’s a grandmother who is between loving and toxic. And she is always dark. But at the same time, that drive, which for me was very related to love and sex in her past, in her memory. That drive is there, trying to get out.”
The final product we get when it comes to Crazy Old Lady wouldn’t be possible without Maura herself. She was disturbing to a point where you’re in awe while also being 100% sure that you’re never going to watch this movie again because of the visceral impression its left on you. Or that’s just me. Because as someone who loves horror, her acting completely immersed me to the point where I forgot I was watching a movie.
For Mauregui, he loved working with a one of a kind act like Maura. He said, “She is spectacular. Not only does she improve the film, but she puts it on her shoulders. […] To work with Maura and to create this with her, it has been one of the happiest things that has happened to me in my life. Because she is, in addition to being super talented, she is very hardworking and pushes forward and makes us work more.”
At the moment of this interviews publication, Maura has 169 acting credits in everything from drama to comedy and horror. And for Mauregui he admires that she’s still acting at 80. But also, that she’s a force of nature at 80. He said, “She does all of this at the age of 80. I don’t even want to think what this woman was when was 30 or 40. All that strength. I think that is reflected in the film, that she is putting all that energy, that dedication. And really working with her is extraordinary. It makes you grow as a filmmaker.”
Crazy Old Lady is now available on Shudder.
