Coming this Halloween season on October 12th is the Netflix Original “The Haunting of Hill House”, based on the classic 1953 horror novel of the same name by Author Shirley Jackson, it has been adapted to the small screen by director Mike Flanagan well known for his work on other horror titles such as Geralds Game and Ouija; Origin of Evil we can expect a particularly frightful season of TV coming our way soon.
What is the Plot of the Novel and will the series follow it?
We know the series will roughly follow the plot of the Novel it is based upon:
In an unspecified region of the United States, a Mansion was built 80 years prior to the events of the “Haunting of Hill House” by Hugh Crain who has long been dead. Investigator of the Supernatural/Paranormal Dr. John Mantague is on the hunt for scientific evidence of the supernatural and decides to rent Hill House for the summer. In the hope of finding someone to assist with his research, he reaches out to those with previous experience in the supernatural to which only Eleanor, previously acquainted with poltergeists she is a fragile young woman who has struggled to make friends after living as recluse looking after her Invalid Mother. Theodora the lighthearted, artist and assistant to Dr. Montague and finally Luke Sanderson the heir to hill house.
Soon the inhabitants of the house experience strange and supernatural events such as writing on the wall… Ghosts roaming the halls of the house in the middle of the night and other baffling events. Unbeknownst to the rest of those staying in the house, Eleanor soon starts to lose touch with reality is it her imagination? Or is there something more sinister afoot?
How is it different from the novel?
Now from what we have seen of the trailer and read up on the cast, the series takes snippets from the plot above and interjects it into the show and will instead follow 2 timelines of the Crain family (In the novel the Crain’s were the original family to of owned Hill house after it had been built by Hugh Crain), the first timeline will follow a young Theodora, Nell, Steven, Shirley, and Luke Crain and their experiences as children in Hill House and the second timeline follows their adult selves and how the experiences from the house shaped their lives after being scarred as children having to live in a Haunted Home.
The Cast & Episodes
This season will have 10 episodes, each roughly having a 50 minute run time.
| Character | Actor | Where have I seen them before? |
|---|---|---|
| Olivia Crain | Carla Gugino | Watchmen, Sin City, Gerald’s Game |
| Hugh Crain | Timothy Hutton | Ordinary People, Leverage, The Good Shepherd |
| Theodora Crain | Kate Siegel | Hush, Gerald’s Game, Ouija: Origin of Evil |
| Young Theo | Mckenna Grace | Gifted, Designated Survivor, I, Tonya |
| Steven Crain | Michiel Huisman | Game of Thrones, Treme, The Age of Adaline |
| Young Steven | Paxton Singleton | The Rookie, Alice Fades Away |
| Luke Crain | Oliver Jackson-Cohen | Faster, Going the Distance, The River |
| Young Luke | Julian Hilliard | Never Goin’ Back, A Father |
| Shirley Crain | Elizabeth Reaser | Twilight, Ouija: Origin of Evil, The Family Stone |
| Young Shirley | Lulu Wilson | Annabelle: Creation, The Millers, Ouija: Origin of Evil |
| Nell Crain | Victoria Pedretti | Uncovering Eden, Sole |
| Young Nell | Violet McGraw | Jett, Love, Ready Player One |
The Trailer
The trailer only dropped last week and it is safe to say it looks creepy as hell!
Will there be a Second Season?
As this season is loosely based on the original novel there is no reason why we couldn’t see a second season that uses the characters from the original novel itself such as Dr. Montague but from what I can speculate from the trailer this isn’t set in the 50’s like the novel and the with the adult timeline it looks to be set in the modern day so how that would tie in with the plot of the novel I am unsure and, until I see the final scene of the season I can’t speculate any further!
Are you excited for “Haunting of Hill House”? Let us know in the comments below! While you’re here make sure to check out our list of best horror shows on Netflix!
Netflix Synopsis: "Flashing between past and present, a fractured family confronts haunting memories of their old home and the terrifying events that drove them from it."
