10 of the scariest moments in The Haunting of Hill House

The Haunting of Hill House production still. Photo: Steve Dietl/Netflix

Banging Walls and a Haunted Father

In the second episode, there is a scene where the two oldest girls, Shirley and Theo, are in Hill House as children, when they experience banging on the walls. As the banging begins, we can’t help but jump, especially as it travels back and forth around the room the girls are in. We may not have seen any ghosts in the scene, but they must have been there (and maybe that makes it worse: the fact we don’t see them, but we know they are there).

And even after the banging stops and Hugh comes into the room, it doesn’t feel like the horror is really over yet. Of course, we’re right. As their dad tries to talk to them and make them feel better, it’s quickly made clear that everything is not okay. While he sits on the side of the bed, his face begins to distort, and a weird, ghastly noise begins emanating from his mouth.

The entire scene is chilling, even as it seems to be a nightmare Shirley is having before being woken up to learn the news of Nell’s death. Knowing what she is waking up to makes it even more of a haunting scene. Her little sister is dead, and she will be the one to prepare her for burial.

While it is the flashback itself that’s scary, what came after was certainly haunting in its own, perhaps more grounded. Maybe that is the real reason why we have to add it to our list of scary moments.