In Ready Or Not, a simple game of hide and seek becomes deadly; the Le Domas family holds fast to the story that the game is always one of chance, but there are several clues in the movie that suggest Grace's wedding night initiation might have been rigged.
After Grace (Samara Weaving) marries Alex (Mark O'Brien), she learns that his family—wealthy, high-society folks who run a board game empire—have a long-standing tradition for anyone who marries into the family. After the vows are taken, the bride or groom must choose a game from an old box said to be brought into the family by a mysterious, old benefactor, Mr. Le Bail, and play the game. Although this seems innocent enough, with others in the family reassuring her by stating they drew classics such as chess and Old Maid, the mood shifts when Grace just so happens to draw the one card that poses a danger to her life: hide and seek.
This game, of course, sets up the main premise of Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin's movie. Grace must hide in the stately Le Domas family home and try to outwit and outsmart her new family as they try to hunt her down and kill her before sunrise. The plot makes it out to seem like it was fated—or even chosen by Mr. Le Bail himself—for Grace to choose the dangerous card, but there are hints early on in the movie that suggest it's possible the Le Domas family knew more than they let on, and even tried to warn Grace about what was meant to happen.
Ready Or Not: Was Hide & Seek Actually Rigged?
Ready Or Not eases into Grace and Alex's wedding day; even before the two head to the altar, both Alex and his brother, Daniel (Adam Brody) act dubiously and subtly warn Grace if she's sure with following through with her impending nuptials. While this could be seen as joking between brothers—ribbing each other as if to ask, "are you sure you want to marry this guy?"—there's no humor in the way it's discussed. Alex even suggests to Grace that they just leave, abandon the entire wedding, and gives her an out. Grace declines, and the two are married. This could also be construed as Alex, who is estranged from his family, warning her about the kind of people they are.
Later, after Grace and Alex get married, they are spied on by his eccentric Aunt Helene (Nicky Guadagni), who catches them canoodling on a bed. Her response is eerie, an ominous warning that seems to be directed to Grace, letting her know that she'll "have to hide better than that". This could be wishful thinking on Helene's part—she may not have approved of Grace and Alex's relationship, and is hopeful Grace will draw the hide and seek card—or it could also mean that she not only knows what's going to happen, but set it up somehow. In a flashback that starts the movie, members of the Le Domas family are seen playing the violent game of hide and seek; it is revealed that this was Helene's wedding night where her new groom, Charles, was killed.
Before the game is played, Alex's nephews are running around, wearing masks and yelling, "kill, kill, kill" as if they also know what's about to happen. This connects to the flashback as well, as during that game of hide and seek, they wore masks; Tony (Henry Czerny), the family patriarch, states that this used to be part of the tradition. If it's really such an unlikely chance that Grace will draw the card, why does every seem to act like it's bound to happen? It could still be coincidence or even the mysterious Le Bail's doing, but it's plausible that there's more to Ready Or Not—and the game—than appears on the surface. There's a chance it could have all been orchestrated by the family to bring Alex back into the fold, although that certainly didn't work out in their favor.