‘The Watcher’ house, now on Netflix, is a nightmare for current owners
The current owners of the house at 657 Boulevard in Westfied, N.J. — subject of the Netflix hit, “The Watcher” — have reportedly never received creepy correspondence like the previous owners. But they’re still living a nightmare.
There’s nothing outwardly sinister about the six-bedroom, four-bathroom, 3,869-square foot house on a tree-lined block of beautiful homes.
But the century-old Dutch colonial has become a sideshow, with a parade of gawkers streaming past it every day and night now that it’s been immortalized by the spooky mini-series starring Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannavale.
When the Post visited this week, a woman emerged from the house, moved a police barricade in the front driveway and drove off in the family Jeep. She ignored the snoops taking photos of her home. But a man on the front porch ordered everyone to go away.
The house is playfully decorated with oversized spiders and webs and a pumpkin sign that warns, “Beware!” However, the Westfield Police tape and barricade, and a “no trespassing” sign, are deadly serious in warning off the waves of curiosity-seekers.
Jack Rothstein, 68, a retired CPA from Edison, said he ventured to 657 Boulevard to snap a photo for his wife. The couple are both watching “The Watcher,” he said, adding, “Don’t give anything away, we’re only on episode three.”
Heather Stephens had some “free time” so the lunch aide drove from Scotch Plains to take video of the “haunted house” to post on her Facebook.
“You don’t know if it’s real or not. You don’t know what to believe,” said Victoria Bas, 16, a junior at nearby Westfield High who said the Netflix program is the toast of the town and her school. “A lot of kids and teachers are talking about it. I hear about it in my history class and in the hallways.”
Riverton NJ’s Jason Dellisanti, 41, said he and his wife finished the series, “and I thought it was great. I think there’s some truth to it.”
The New Jersey home has been terrorized for years by sinister letters from a supposed stalker.
Derek and Maria Broaddus purchased their dream house for $1.4 million in June 2014 — but they were chased away before they could move in, due to nightmarish missives signed by “The Watcher.”
The couple, who have young children, believe the stalker had a “mentally disturbed fixation” on the home. In the letters, The Watcher claims to be the rightful owner of the home and hints he’ll be keeping tabs on the “young blood” that’s taken up residence in the abode.
The creeped-out owners sold the house for $959,360 in 2019.
Westfield police and the Union County prosecutor’s office have sought out The Watcher, but no one has ever been charged in the case.
The Netflix show goes far beyond the reality of creepy letters, however, with fictionalized pet murder, blood sacrifice theories and crazed intruders.
Nerendra Dave, 40, the manager at the local Krauszer’s Food Store on Central Avenue, said he’s binge-watching the show — and would never have sold the house for a loss if he owned it.
“I would find out what the f–k went on,” he said. “I put a f–king lot of money into that house — I’d shoot them!”
