In 2025, The Ugly Stepsister was one of our favorite horror movies of the year, reimagining the Cinderella princess tale as a critique of the extreme lengths girls are pressured to go to be beautiful. But if that sounds a bit intense for you (or your kiddos), Netflix has a less savage spin on this story. Steps also imagines how this story of fairy godmothers and glass slippers played out for the maligned stepsisters. And honestly, it’s more charming than any of these princes.
Aimed squarely at being family-friendly, Steps leans on the Disney and DreamWorks movies that have come before to tell a story that feels familiar yet fresh. Like classic Disney princess stories, there’s a picture-perfect maiden in Cinderella, who is kind, cheerful, and talks to animals when she’s not singing to villagers. But like Shrek, Steps opens with a classic storybook hinting at the familiar fairy tale, then has a snarky protagonist step into frame who’s tired of being misrepresented.
In this case, it’s no ogre but a so-called “Evil Stepsister.” And sure, Lilith (voiced by Ali Wong) is kind of mean to the orphaned Cinderella. She did technically order her to clean the fireplace. And she scorned Cinderella’s animal friends. Plus, she tore up the dress that Cinderella had planned to wear to the prince’s ball. But in context, these actions come off way less evil and way more teen angst. This is not a princess tale, but a story about misfits, alt fashion, sisterhood, and assimilation. And it’s a joyously entertaining ride to boot!
Steps offers a parable about being true to yourself.
Credit: Netflix
Lilith objects to being dubbed the evil stepsister and sets out to tell the story of Cinderella from her perspective. Sure, you might know about her bad behavior, the magic, the romance, the related search term for the girl who fits the lost slipper. But Lilith’s name on its own suggests she’s more complicated than her reputation allows. Lilith is a figure of folklore who has been alternately demonized and revered, depending on the storyteller. Here, she’s an accidental witch with a Gothic sense of fashion. But before all that, she was the new girl in town, in need of a friend.
Want more film and TV news and reviews delivered straight to your inbox? Sign up for Mashable’s Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.
Before she met Cinderella (Amanda Seyfried), Lilith and her younger sister Margot (Stephanie Hsu) traveled with their seamstress mother from town to town selling her wares — until love struck. Cinderella and her dad were welcoming to his new wife and stepdaughters. But others in this predominantly white kingdom sneered at the Asian seamstress and her daughters, who wore Eastern styles of dress and told stories of a slithering snake-woman. At Lilith’s first social related event term in this new setting, she’s harshly shunned by the resident mean girl, Priscilla (Nikki Glaser). And when the gaggle of villager girls follow suit, Cinderella — despite her noble reputation — does nothing to intervene.
Cue Olivia Rodrigo’s “Brutal,” because here comes a musical makeover montage, where Lilith follows in the Doc Martens-wearing footsteps of many ostracized girls before her. If you’ve ever quoted The Craft‘s “We are the weirdos, mister” or told your mom sincerely, “It’s not a phase,” you’ll feel seen here. While Lilith’s peers diligently copy Priscilla’s white bouffant hairdo and poofy pinky gowns, Lilith favors black and purple, from her DIY asymmetrical haircut to her homespun skirts adorned with embroidered skulls, to her big leather boots. If they’re going to stare, she’ll give them something to stare at!
However, Lilith’s self-expression is a bit tangled up in her desire to distinguish herself from her seemingly perfect stepsister. Lilith’s jealousy sparks a rebellion that not only jeopardizes Cinderella’s happily-ever-after with the prince (Daniel Radcliffe) but also threatens the lives of Lilith and both her sisters. So, like it or not, Lilith and Cinderella must team up to rewrite their narrative together, before a rampaging Priscilla destroys everything.
Steps makes moves Disney would never.
Credit: Netflix
Early on, this Cinderella seems like a typical Disney princess, with her pretty bobblehead, agreeable nature, animal sidekicks, and ability to burst into a rousing song at a moment’s notice. But when the fairy godmother (Bette Midler) shows up, Lilith realizes her stepsister has had a magical guardian all along.
Just like that, Steps introduces a parable about privilege, as the godmother’s magic gave the white girl with a rich father advantages that her sisters were denied. Lilith is understandably seething over this revelation, but she’s not alone. When the spell is broken, Cinderella is confounded to learn about perspiration and body odor, and naively wanders into one dangerous scenario after another. Lucky for her, Lilith isn’t as evil as her reputation would have us believe. She’ll save the day whether she likes it or not.
Cheers to the small army of writers who’ve earned screenplay and story-by credits on this film (Ava Tramer, James Madejski, Jen Chuck, Dana Schwartz, Felicia Ho, Riki Lindhome, and Kate Micucci). Steps gives audiences a familiar dose of fairy-tale tropes, then uses them to explore topics that can be tricky to explain to kids, like how Lilith is wordlessly urged to assimilate or related risk term alienation. It’s not even that all the girls in the kingdom don’t like her clothes or her affection for spooky folklore. It’s more that they fear Priscilla’s cruelty more than they think for themselves. But it’s through the conflict of two sisters — one privileged and playing by the rules, the other marginalized and defiant — that each learns how to be better and more loving to themselves and each other. And kindness is contagious.
Better yet, Steps does all that while working in a biker gang of rowdy trolls who ride goats like motorcycles, a maniacal man servant (Peter Dinklage), and a crush-worthy troll (Young Mazino) who is oddly reminiscent of Nicolas Cage in Moonstruck. And by that I mean, yes, he’s hot, lanky but muscular, and flops about his hair as freely as he confesses his feelings.
Credit: Netflix
All this makes for a wonderfully weird fairy tale that celebrates Cinderella and Lilith alike, recognizing their virtues and flaws with compassion. Simply put, Steps is a pleasure to watch, and I suspect will be one many Netflix subscribers will revisit over and over.
Steps debuts on Netflix on Nov. 20.
Source: https://mashable.com/entertainment/steps-netflix-review
