Here's Why Verna Keeps Appearing In 'The Fall Of The House Of Usher'
Verna is a mysterious character in The Fall of the House of Usher on Netflix.
She first becomes connected to the Usher family on New Year's Eve in 1980.
Her name is an anagram for Raven, a prominent symbol in Edgar Allan Poe's works.
Netflix’s newest show The Fall of the House of Usher just dropped, so grab your cozy Halloween jammies and your popcorn, because this psychological thriller series is perfect for spooky season.
Based on the Edgar Allan Poe short story of the same name, the eight-episode mini series follows the Usher family, including twins Roderick (played by Bruce Greenwood) and Madeline Usher (played by Mary McDonnell), as well as Roderick’s six children. As the family dies off one by one, a mysterious woman always seems to be near... Verna!
Of course, this raises a lot of questions about this otherworldly character and her role in controlling the fate of the Usher family. Here's everything you need to know about Verna.
*Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for The Fall of the House of Usher, including the ending.*
Who is Verna in The Fall of the House of Usher?
Verna first appears as a brunette bartender whom Roderick and Madeline meet on New Year's Eve in 1980. But she keeps popping up in each of the Usher family's lives throughout the series.
She meets Prospero Usher, Roderick's youngest son, at an exclusive and hedonistic party he's throwing at one of his dad's old factories. In this interaction, she's a blonde wearing a skeleton mask. When Prospero asks who Verna is, she says, "Consequence, and tonight is consequential." She then flirtatiously tries to convince Prospero not to set off the ceiling sprinkler system that are supposed to be the climactic moment of his rave.
But, he doesn't listen, and disaster strikes. Turns out, there was highly acidic liquid (that Fortunato was supposed to dispose of, but didn't) in the water silo on top of the building, and when the sprinklers turned on, acid sprayed on all the revelers, killing almost everyone. Before leaving the party, Verna places her mask over Prospero’s face, and that is how his body is found.
Verna continues to cross paths with each Usher family member right before their untimely, and gorey, deaths. For example, she works at the animal rescue Napoleon Usher visits to get a black cat, which he ends up chasing off a balcony, falling to his death. She also kills Camille L’Espanaye by transforming from a security guard at her half-sister Victorine's research lab into a murderous chimpanzee. And that's just the beginning.
How is Verna connected to the Usher family?
As mentioned, Verna originally met the Usher twins on New Year’s Eve in 1980. This was a turning point in Usher family history, because it's when Madeline and Roderick kill his boss, Rufus Griswold. After the murder, they go to a nearby bar so they can have an alibi, and Verna serves them.
By the end of the night, she offers the Ushers a deal: She'll ensure they will live wildly rich and successful lives, but only if they agree that their bloodline will die when they do. And because the twins entered the world together, they will die together.
The Ushers take the deal, and 40 years later, when Roderick is diagnosed with an incurable illness and his death is imminent, Verna comes to collect.
What does her name mean?
Poe fans will notice Verna, is an anagram for Raven, the bird symbolizing death in many of his works. This will also come into play at the end because...
Who plays Verna?
Actress Carla Gugino plays Verna. You likely recognize her from two other spooky mini series, The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor. Both of those Netflix originals were directed by Mike Flanagan, who also directed The Fall of the House of Usher. Before her stint as a thriller star, Carla also appeared in Spy Kids, Night at the Museum, Troop Beverly Hills, and This Boy's Life.
What happens at the end of The Fall of the House of Usher?
One by one, all of Roderick's children, and his only granddaughter, die until only Madeline and Roderick are left. In the final episode, the twins are sitting in the basement of their childhood home, drinking and reminiscing about their life together. They wonder if they would've done anything differently if they'd believed Verna was real all this time, and ultimately decide that they wouldn't have.
They toast to each other, and after they both drink, Madeline realizes that Roderick has poisoned her. (He likely did it so she might avoid the more gruesome fates of his other family members.) But, because the twins must die together, it's later revealed that Madeline is not actually dead and, ultimately, she ends up strangling her brother and dying with him. They take their last breath as their childhood home falls on them. Verna then appears on top of the house wearing a black lace dress.
At the very end of the last episode, Verna visits the Usher family gravesite and leaves a memento on top of each of the Usher's gravestones. Then, she transforms into a raven and flies away.
Watch The Fall of The House of Usher Here
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