Spoilers, obviously, for Companion are ahead! If you’d like to watch the film, you can do so with a Max subscription.
I know many people love a plot twist, and most of the time, I do too. However, in other cases, a story can be more effective if you are clued into the mystery or twist before the other characters are. Now, the horror flick on the 2025 movie schedule, Companion, is able to pull off both these feats successfully, depending on what you know or don’t know going into the film. However, I’m of the opinion that it is actually better if you know the biggest plot twist before you watch the movie.
Now, let’s talk about why this is the case. However, if you’d rather go into the movie blind (which I respect), now is your last chance to avoid spoilers. For those of you who want to know why Companion is better with knowledge of the spoiler before watching, or if you’ve already seen the movie, keep reading.
Sophie Thatcher’s Performance Becomes So Much Better Once You Know What Her Character Is
As our review of Companion notes, Sophie Thatcher’s performance as Iris makes this movie. She’s remarkable in it, and she only gets better once you learn the truth about her character.
At the end of the first act, that truth is revealed, and the audience finds out Iris is a robot that Jack Quaid’s Josh bought to be his girlfriend. Now, that’s a fun twist, don’t get me wrong, and there’s something to be said about going into this movie completely blind. However, there’s also something to be said about knowing this from the jump.
Understanding Thatcher’s character is a robot gives you the chance to really analyze her performance in the first act. You can catch her choices and subtle movements that hint at her true identity, and I had more fun watching that than being shocked by the twist.
Seeing her be nice to the car robot or clocking her unique walk was fascinating, and it only added to my overall appreciation and love for this movie. It also gave me the chance to fully appreciate the evolution of her sentient being as the movie progressed, because I understood the kind of robot she was at the start, and then got to watch how the events of the film forced her to adapt and change.
Basically, Thatcher gives a masterful performance in this film, and that becomes even clearer if you can appreciate what she’s playing before it’s revealed.
There Are Other Plot Twists Later That Add Fun Surprises To The Movie
Now, I may have just freely talked about the film’s biggest spoiler, but have no fear, I won’t spoil anything else. However, I will tell you there are many more twists and surprises throughout the film, which means you can go in knowing about Iris and still be shocked by this movie.
From learning more about the kind of robot Iris is to Companion’s absolutely wild ending, there’s plenty of mystery, intrigue and shock baked into this flick.
Therefore, you can go in knowing one of the biggest plot twists, and still be surprised by and love the movie.
I certainly did, and I actually think it’s better to know the true identity of Sophie Thatcher’s character in advance. It allows you to fully see the nuances of her robot and this story from the jump, and it’s not the only plot twist in play. So, yeah, Companion, in my humble opinion, is better if you know the big twist beforehand.