Here's the tragic backstory and death of Abigail Dudley in The Haunting Of Hill House explained. Based loosely on the classic novel, The Haunting Of Hill House is the third adaptation of Shirley Jackson's story. The first movie was 1963's The Haunting from director Robert Wise and involved an investigation into the titular house. The film is still regarded as one of the best of the genre and relied on psychological chills and masterful sound design for most of its scares.
In stark contrast to that approach is 1999's The Haunting, starring Catherine Zeta-Jones and Liam Neeson. The film overdosed on CGI effects and jump scares, which just made for a hollow, noisy experience. Mike Flanagan (Doctor Sleep) took the helm for all ten episodes of 2018's The Haunting Of Hill House. This Netflix adaptation made huge changes to the original book, but it was acclaimed for its performances and blend of engrossing family drama with genuinely terrifying sequences.
The Haunting Of Hill House had several shocking twists - including the true identity of the Bent-Neck Lady ghost - but it subverts some expectations too. In flashbacks, young Luke Crain is seen with his "imaginary" friend Abigail who viewers will assume is another ghost, but she turns out to the daughter of Hill House's caretakers Horace and Clare Dudley. The Dudley's kept their daughter homeschooled and sheltered, but she sneaks out to meet Luke.
Abigail is a quiet, shy little girl who meets a horrible fate in Hill House's Red Room. The house itself is something of a living being that feeds on the torment of those who dwell within, and its shown to have various powers like the ability to manipulate time. The Red Room is basically its stomach, and it drove Olivia Crain (Carla Gugino) to the brink of madness. In one of The Haunting Of Hill House's darkest scenes she brings Luke, his twin sister Nell, and Abigail for a tea party in the Red Room - with the tea spiked with rat poison.
Hugh arrives in time to save Luke and Nell, but Abigail drinks the poison and dies. Following the deaths of both Abigail and Olivia, Hugh wants to burn the house down, but the Dudleys convince him not to, as Abigail's spirit now resides inside. They can visit her whenever they want if the house still stands, and Hugh reluctantly agrees - though in hindsight that would have been the better option. In the tear-jerking finale of The Haunting Of Hill House, Horace is seen taking Clara's body to the house - many years after the present-day events of the show- and she's reunited with Abigail in death.