Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House‘s most prominent ghost may have been the Bent-Neck Lady, but it turns out that there were a number of hidden ghosts throughout the series.
The modern reimagining of Shirley Jackson’s 1959 novel of the same name debuted on the streaming giant Oct. 12, taking viewers on a tragic and terrifying journey into the lives of the Crain family, who have been haunted by the home where they spent a single summer. While there are a handful of ghosts that make an appearance throughout, including the Bent-Neck Lady and the specter in a bowler hat that follows Luke, a number of other ghosts were much harder to spot.
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“We actually hid dozens of ghosts throughout the series, in plain sight, in the deep background of shots. We don’t call any attention to them, but they’re there,” director Mike Flanagan told Vulture. “If you look in a door frame, or under the piano, or behind a curtain in a lot of otherwise ordinary scenes, you’ll see someone there.”
Although some viewers are already on their second or third or even fourth binge of The Haunting of Hill House, some of the hidden figures still remain elusive, hidden so well that they are nearly impossible to spot.
Keep scrolling to see all of the hidden ghosts you may have missed during your first binge of the series.
Episode 1, “Stephen sees a ghost”
Before audiences are even introduced to a member of the Crain family, or any human character, The Haunting of Hill House presents the first paranormal, spin-chilling appearance: a ghost lurking within Hill House, peering through the railing of the stairs.
The second hidden ghost to appear is so well-hidden that even circled, it is difficult to make out. This particular specter appears while Steven and Hugh are hiding in Steven’s room, remaining out of sight of the ghostly figure lurking in the hall. Unbeknownst to them, there was already a ghost in the room with them.
Episode one also offered fans their first look at the Bent-Neck Lady, the figure, later revealed to be a future version of Nell, lurking behind a young Nell as she sleeps.
As Steven and his father flee Hill House, they are so determined to make it to the door and to the safety of the car outside that they fail to notice the group of ghosts gathering in the foyer. Just as they reach the bottom of the stairs, two figures can be seen standing ot the side, watching them.
Proving that episode one was packed with the paranormal and proving that the house had a particular interest in Olivia, a pale face is seen peering around a clock as Olivia interrupts Mrs. Dudley talking to Steve about the gospels.
Episode 2, “Open Casket”
When Shirley finds her mother busy drawing blueprints for their “forever home,” a ghost in the garden just to the right of the statue manages to eavesdrop on the subsequent conversation, a presence that neither Shirley nor Olivia seem aware of.
In the same scene, a reverse shot focusing on Olivia shows yet another ghost lurking in the home, this one standing in the kitchen.
Episode 3, “Touch”
It comes as no surprise that episode three, “Touch,” is the episode featuring the most hidden figures given that the episode’s focus character, Theo, has a paranormal connection of her own.
The first glimpse of the paranormal in this episode happens when Theo walks into the kitchen as Nellie and Luke examine the in-house communication system. In the door to the right of Theo, one ghostly figure can be seen peering through the upper left panel, which has since become what appears to be a glass pane.
Despite that this ghost, a matronly figure standing around a corner in the room, is right in front of Theo and Luke, neither of them seem to notice it, proving that while visible to the audience, the Crain family may not necessarily be able to see hidden figures.
While the dumbwaiter led Luke to horrors of his own, a crawling specter that was very visible and managed to rip a portion of his pajama shirt, Theo was unaware of the apparition haunting her from the top. Difficult to see, the figure stands in the dark in a different room.
The incident with the dumbwaiter leads a young Theo on an investigation to discover the truth, and as she searches for the ladder to the basement, a figure, possibly the same one that watched her in the dining room, watches her near the door.
Episode 3, “Touch” – Cont’d
Hill House’s hidden ghostly resident seemed to be keen on keeping their eyes on the middle Crain child. Once Theo discovers the entrance to the basement, one ghostly figure, perhaps the very one that attacked Luke, is hiding behind the ladder.
Theo made it out of the basement without any ghostly encounters, by another figure seen lurking in the living room behind Olivia.
Theo’s adventures through the house continued to be riddled with ghostly appearances. In one of the creepiest, and not so hidden, appearance, a bald man appears in the hallway as Theo walks by.
Proving once and for all Hill House’s interest in Olivia and Theo — another conversation between the mother-daughter duo, the one in which Olivia gifts Theo with gloves — is watched upon by the spirit of a woman. Difficult to see at first, this ghost lurks past two archways far in the distance.
The Crain family had several close run-ins with the home’s ghostly residents, evidenced by the man lurking behind a red lamp as Hugh flees down a hallway with Nell and Luke.
Episode 4, “The Twin Thing”
The Haunting of Hill House‘s fourth episode got its first hidden ghost roughly eight minutes in, with a figure appearing behind a chair in a room behind Luke and Nellie.
Although “The Twin Thing” focused on the paranormal events that the Crain twins experiences and their attempts to warn their family, their concerns fell on deft ears, and neither Hugh nor Olivia noticed the blonde ghostly figure lurking down the hallway as they discussed their dream home.
One of the more difficult ghouls to spot, a face peers through the glass cabinet across the kitchen as Luke and Nell once again play with the in-house communication system, where they had another scary encounter with a more prominent ghost.
Episode 5, “The Bent-Neck Lady”
The Bent-Neck-Lady wasn’t the only ghost that made an appearance in episode five. As Luke descends the stairs, the same shadowy figures that had been there as Steven and Hugh fled the home in episode one can be seen lingering again.
While Olivia attempts to calm Nell following another appearance by the Bent-Neck Lady, a figure appears in the shadows behind her. Just as The Haunting of Hill House boasts a number of actors from director Mike Flanagan’s previous projects, including his wife Katie Siegel, this spirit is reportedly portrayed by Bruce Greenwood, who portrayed Carla Gugino husband in Gerald’s Game.
One of the more terrifying hidden figures in the series, a sinister looking ghost hides under the piano, clawing its way forward, as Theo walks into the room after Olivia scolds Nell for writing on the wall. As it turns out, Nell wasn’t the one to draw on the wall.
Ghosts were heavy in this particular scene. As Theo pulls back the wallpaper and reveals the full foreboding message written on the wall, “Welcome home, Nell,” another apparition can be seen lurking just behind Nellie.
Episode 7, “Eulogy”
In this Hugh-centered episode, the Crain family patriarch makes it his mission to discover what is in the Red Room. The mysterious room, however, does not only remain locked, but is also under close surveillance by an apparition keeping a watchful eye on Hugh from behind a door. This particular ghost appears roughly 38 minutes into the episode.
Police weren’t the only ones there to investigate after Hugh discovered the body of William Hill, who bricked himself into the wall in the ’40s, while renovating. A ghost lurking in the background just peers around the door frame.
That same figure seemed to maintain her interest in Hugh and his renovations. In another shot, after Hugh discovers mold in the basement, the figure can be seen staring at him from around the corner.
Episode 9, “Screaming Meemies”
The Screaming Meemies may refer to scary dreams Hill House’s longtime ghostly resident Poppy Hill told Olivia about, but she wasn’t the only ghost in this episode. Towards the beginning of the episode, as Hugh picks up a sleeping Luke and prepares to carry him to his room, a ghost can be seen looming in the archway behind him.
One of the most “hidden” ghosts in the series, this figure has been credited with getting viewers talking about the other hidden figures in the series, prompting many to do a second binge.
The final hidden figure to appear in the penultimate episode, is, once again, the shadowy figures at the bottom of the stairs. Never willing to fully make themselves known to the Crains, this ghostly bunch could once again be seen lingering in the background as Olivia prepares to leave.
Episode 10, “Silence Lay Steady”
Although the ghosts that flocked Steven as he exited Hill House in one of the final scenes were anything but hidden, one figure earlier in the season finale was a bit more difficult to spot. When an adult Steven returns to Hill House to save Luke, a ghost stands half-hidden behind a doorway, watching Steve as he ventures further into the home.
