When Stevie Magpali, a four-year-old girl with the weight of the world on her tiny shoulders, whispers an incantation into a magical dream book, she doesn’t just enter a fantasy world—she tries to rewrite her family’s collapse. Netflix’s 2025 animated film In Your Dreams opens with pancakes, laughter, and a child’s chilling observation: "This is how disaster movies start." And by the time the credits roll, we realize the real villain wasn’t some shadowy dream entity—it was Stevie’s own desperate need to control what she couldn’t fix.
The Dream That Wasn’t Real
Stevie, voiced by Hailey Magpali, grows up in a quiet suburban home where her father, Michael (Simu Liu), struggles to keep his music career alive, and her mother (Cristin Milioti) faces a life-altering job offer that could mean moving away. The tension isn’t loud. It’s in the silence between arguments, in the way Michael stops tuning his guitar, in the way her mother stares at her laptop screen too long before bed. Stevie, ever the little mediator, tries to stitch them back together—faking breakfast notes, pretending each parent made the other’s coffee. But kids aren’t therapists. And love isn’t a puzzle with a single solution. Enter the dream book. When Stevie and her younger brother Elliot recite the spell, they slip into a surreal dreamscape where stuffed animals talk and emotions take physical form. Baloney Tony, Elliot’s worn-out plush, voiced by Craig Robinson, becomes their reluctant guide. "If you concentrate hard enough," he says, "you can start lucid dreaming and take control." And Stevie does. Too hard.The Sandman’s Lie
The dream world splits into two realms: the Sandman (Omid Djalili), a shimmering, paternal figure who promises Stevie she can reunite her parents if she just believes hard enough, and Nightmara (Gia Carides), a swirling, chaotic force that mirrors her deepest fears—her family shattered, her father’s music dead, her mother gone. At first, Stevie buys the Sandman’s story. She crafts dreamscapes of perfect harmony: floating pacifiers, endless pizza worlds, her parents laughing under a sky made of sheet music. But at timestamp 445, everything cracks. The Sandman, sifting through their parents’ memories, delivers the blow: "They were never getting back together." It’s not a lie. It’s the truth she’s been avoiding. The film doesn’t make the Sandman evil—he’s just a reflection of what Stevie wants to hear. He’s the voice of denial dressed in stardust.The Twist No One Saw Coming
Here’s the twist: Nightmara wasn’t the villain. She was the truth-teller. The Sandman? He was the real antagonist—the seductive illusion that kept Stevie trapped in fantasy. Her entire journey wasn’t about saving her parents. It was about realizing she didn’t need to. At timestamp 451, in a moment that breaks your heart, Stevie—determined to keep her perfect dream alive—uses her lucid power to fling Elliot into the void, waking him up. He screams. She’s alone. The dream begins to dissolve. And for the first time, she doesn’t try to rebuild it. Roger Ebert’s review nails it: "Over the course of the film, Stevie will learn to appreciate Elliot as a partner. And she will learn that she cannot fix everything, and that’s okay." That’s not a moral. It’s a revelation.What Happens When the Dream Ends?
The real world doesn’t magically heal. But it changes. Michael, who had been drifting, surprises everyone—he decides to move with them. Not because he’s fixed. Not because the marriage is perfect. But because he chooses to be part of the family, even if it’s messy. They relocate to Duth—a fictionalized nod to the Netherlands, where the film’s production team reportedly drew visual inspiration from Dutch canals and pastel houses. And Michael? He starts a band there. Not to save his career. Not to impress anyone. Just because he still loves music. And Stevie? She watches him tune his guitar in their new kitchen, the same one where she once tried to fix her parents with pancakes and lies. She doesn’t smile wide. She doesn’t cheer. She just breathes. And that’s enough.Why This Ending Matters
This isn’t a fairy tale. It’s a quiet revolution in children’s cinema. Most animated films teach kids to fight monsters. In Your Dreams teaches them to stop trying to fix adults. The film’s genius lies in its restraint. No grand battle. No villain defeated with a spell. Just a child learning that love doesn’t require perfection—it requires presence. That sometimes, the bravest thing you can do is let go. The emotional payoff isn’t in the move to Duth. It’s in the silence after Elliot says, "You didn’t have to do that." And Stevie, for the first time, doesn’t answer. She just leans her head on his shoulder.Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the real villain in In Your Dreams?
The real villain isn’t Nightmara or even the Sandman—it’s Stevie’s belief that she must fix her parents’ relationship. The Sandman represents the comforting lie that control can restore happiness, while Nightmara reflects the painful truth. Stevie’s arc ends when she stops trying to manipulate reality and accepts that some things can’t be fixed—only lived through.
What does Duth represent in the film’s ending?
Duth is a fictional Dutch-inspired town symbolizing a fresh start—not a magical fix. The filmmakers chose it for its quiet, lived-in aesthetic, contrasting the surreal dream world. Michael’s decision to move there with the family signals growth: he’s not returning to his old life, he’s building a new one alongside them, proving that unity doesn’t require perfection.
Why does Stevie send Elliot flying in the dream?
Stevie sends Elliot flying because she’s terrified of losing her perfect dream. In her mind, he’s the only one who can wake her up—and if he stays asleep, she can remain in the illusion. It’s a moment of selfishness born from grief. But it’s also the turning point: she realizes her actions hurt the one person who never stopped loving her, even when she pushed him away.
Is In Your Dreams based on a true story?
No, but the emotional core is deeply personal. The filmmakers drew from interviews with children of divorced or strained families, particularly those who internalized parental conflict as their responsibility. Stevie’s behavior—making pancakes to mediate, blaming herself—is a common, heartbreaking coping mechanism among young kids in turbulent households.
What’s the significance of Baloney Tony?
Baloney Tony, voiced by Craig Robinson, represents childhood innocence and unconditional loyalty. Unlike the Sandman or Nightmara, he doesn’t offer solutions—he just stays. He’s the quiet voice saying, "You don’t have to fix this. I’m still here." His presence reminds Stevie—and the audience—that love doesn’t require grand gestures, just consistency.
Will there be a sequel to In Your Dreams?
As of 2025, Netflix has not announced any sequel or spin-off. The film was designed as a standalone emotional journey, with a complete arc for Stevie. Its power lies in its closure: she doesn’t need another dream. She’s finally awake.
