The Bent-Neck Lady

## Episode Guide

**The Bent-Neck Lady** is the fifth episode of *The Haunting of Hill House*.

## Synopsis

A dark specter with an unsettling silhouette has haunted Nell since she was a girl. Now "the Bent-Neck Lady" is back -- and she's calling Nell home.

## Plot

In 1992, Nell is woken in the middle of the night by an apparition; "the Bent-Neck Lady." She screams and her parents come to her, taking Nell to their room, where they reassure her that it was just a nightmare - but Nell insists she was wide awake. Nell asks to sleep on the living room sofa, not wanting to go back to her own bed, and Olivia stays with her. She asks about Olivia's locket, which Olivia opens to reveal photos of Nell and Luke inside. She promises to give the locket to Nell when she's older, but lets her borrow it for the night. When Nell falls asleep, Olivia goes back to her own bed, but after she's gone, Nell is haunted by "the Bent-Neck Lady" again, who hovers over her on the sofa and screams at her, moaning "No, no, no" repeatedly.

In 2016, now an adult, Nell visits a sleep clinic, where she meets technologist Arthur Vance. He reassures her that the visions are normal, probably a result of sleep paralysis. However, Nell still questions the visions, and Arthur reassures her numerous people report hallucinations while going through the stages of sleep; that the visions are very likely spillages of dreams. The two connect, eventually going out for coffee and begin dating. Arthur proposes to Nell on New Year's and she accepts; the two are married soon after. At her wedding, Nell sees a vision of her late mother, Olivia.

The two live happily until one night, Nell begins to experience episodes of sleep paralysis again. One night, Arthur stands to turn on the light but collapses to the ground moments later and dies immediately. Nell then sees the ominous shadow of the Bent-Neck Lady looming over Arthur's body. Nell tells this story to her new therapist, but does not give details about the cause of death, as she believes the Bent-Neck Lady killed Arthur; the therapist corrects her, however, citing that he died of a brain aneurysm.

A flashback to her childhood shows Nell discovering a tea set. She brings the tea set to Ms. Dudley, who explains that it belonged to Jacqueline Hill, daughter of the house owners. Nell asks if she can keep the tea set, and Ms. Dudley agrees, granted she gets permission from her parents. Nell fears her mother will say no, as she is not allowed to play with fragile objects, but Ms. Dudley tells her to insist. Nell goes downstairs to the kitchen to wash the set, but is interrupted by her mother, who is furious that she wrote "Nell" on the wall. Nell pleads with her mother, explaining that she did not write on the wall, with Theo backing her up. However, Olivia is furious, and orders that the wall cleaned immediately. While cleaning, Theo pulls back the rest of the wallpaper and realizes that there is more text: "Come Home, Nell" is written on the wall in red chalk.

Moments before Luke enters rehab, he asks Nell to pick him up and drive him there. On the way, Luke asks Nell to buy him one last dose of heroin to aid him in his recovery. She reluctantly agrees, and she once again sees the Bent-Neck Lady standing in the distance. Nell explains to her therapist, however, that when Luke felt better in rehab, she too felt better; the therapist, however, is unwilling to entertain Nell's "the twin thing."

Months later, while Nell is experiencing trouble with her medication, she confronts Steve at a book talk. Nell is furious that Steve sold their family stories for money, and embarrasses Steve in front of his fans. Angry, he pulls her aside and explains that she has had the past six years to voice any objections and now is not the time.

In the past, after fleeing from Hill House, Hugh Crain drives his children to a motel. He leaves them at the motel and leaves to return to the house to get Olivia. Hugh asks the children to take care of one another while he is gone, and the children (except for Steven and Theo) all hug their father. After their father leaves, Luke tells his siblings that Olivia looked injured in the Red Room. The children are confused, however, citing that the Red Room is locked; Nell remarks that the woman wasn't their mother.

The following morning, Hugh returns, covered in blood. He tells Nell that her mother is okay now, and that their Aunt Janet will be there later to pick them up. He gives Nell a pocket watch and says she'll be there at two. He kisses her before leaving with the police.

In present day, Nell falls asleep at the same motel, having driven there to see Hill House for what it was: a "carcass in the woods." She wakes up to find a vision of Luke's corpse stuck to the ceiling. Nell panics and calls Steven, but he rejects her call. She calls Shirley but she also rejects her call. Nell leaves Shirley a voicemail, saying that she's worried about Luke, a direct result of their twin connection. Nell goes to buy a drink from the soda machine, but the lights flicker and she is knocked back by the Bent-Neck Lady. When she returns to her room, she sees that she has a missed a call from Steve. Nell decides that it is time to return home to Hill House.

When she arrives at Hill House, she sees it boarded-up and derelict. She calls her father, and as she's speaking to him, the house's interior lights up. She finishes talking to her dad, and walks up to the house.

Inside, the house looks well-cared for. She is reunited with her siblings, seeing them as both children and adults. She also sees her mother, who tells Nell that she is expected. She walks downstairs in an elegant gown, and sees her husband. After dancing with the love of her life, she walks upstairs toward the Red Door, and Olivia puts her locket around Nell's neck. Nell is happy, but something is wrong. She realizes that the locket is actually a noose, and that she is on a balcony. While Nell pleads with her mother to help her, Olivia pushes her off the stairs. Nell's neck snaps as the noose goes taut, and in a flashback sequence, Nell goes back to all the times she ever saw the Bent-Neck Lady, now seeing it from the Lady's perspective as she continues to fall forward. After falling back to the first encounter she ever saw the Lady, she screams in horror as she realizes that ***she*** was the Bent-Neck Lady, and always will be.

## Cast

* Michiel Huisman as Steven Crain
* Carla Gugino as Olivia Crain
* Elizabeth Reaser as Shirley Crain
* Oliver Jackson-Cohen as Luke Crain
* Kate Siegel as Theodora Crain
* Victoria Pedretti as Eleanor Crain
* Lulu Wilson as Young Shirley Crain
* Mckenna Grace as Young Theodora Crain
* Paxton Singleton as Young Steve Crain
* Julian Hilliard as Young Luke Crain
* Violet McGraw as Young Nell Crain
* Henry Thomas as Young Hugh Crain

## Notes

* The episode reveals that Eleanor Crain is herself the Bent-Neck Lady.