CBS’ Ghosts features a cast full of spectral characters that each hail from a distinct time, making fans wonder “How did the ghosts die in Ghosts?” Each ghost comes with a unique backstory and death. Though each of the eight ghosts has a wildly different perspective based on their experiences throughout history, they form a sort of family. After all, being stuck with the same people for all eternity allows plenty of time to get to know each other. Ghosts stars Utkarsh Ambudkar and Rose McIver as Jay and Sam, a young couple who inherit an upstate New York mansion.
In an adaptation of a BBC show of the same name, the couple discovers the house also comes with several ghostly inhabitants, who Sam can see after a near-death experience. These ghosts are Thorfinn, Sasappis, Isaac, Hetty, Alberta, Flower, Pete, and Trevor. Although other ghosts feature in the show, such as those in the basement “cholera pit,” the British soldiers from the shed outside, and even Hetty’s nefarious husband Elias, the main eight are the most fully fleshed-out throughout the first three Ghosts seasons.
Thorfinn
Unlike Marvel’s Thor from the MCU, with whom he shares a name, Thorfinn is not a god, although he does have some pseudo-lightning powers. The oldest ghost in the show, Thorfinn is a Viking who traveled to North America but was accidentally left behind by his compatriots. The Vikings’ historical voyage was about 1,000 years ago, meaning Thorfinn died in 1007 BC. He died after being struck by lightning on the land that would one day hold Sam and Jay’s house, which leaves him with the ghostly ability to make lights flicker.
Never one to pass up a good discussion about fishing or fighting wild animals, Thorfinn is a Viking through and through. Instead of a Viking like Thorfinn in Ghosts, the oldest ghost in the UK version of the comedy series is a caveman named Robin. He is similar to Thorfinn when talking with monosyllabic dialogue and his ability to control electricity. He also died when struck by lightning.
Sasappis
When it comes to what order the ghosts died in Ghosts, Sasappis is about 500 years younger than Thorfinn, dying in the 1520s. He’s a Lenape man, an indigenous group from the Hudson Valley in New York as well as parts of present-day Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Unlike most of the other specters in Ghosts, Sasappis has yet to reveal how he died, but one of his favorite pastimes is reminding all the others of how they met their ends, most of which he was there for.
While this ghost’s backstory remains unknown, it is revealed in Ghosts season 1, episode 7, that a woman whom Sass loved in life, Shiki, is also a ghost, and he tries to get in touch with her. Sasappis is also a big fan of watching TV and often asks Sam and Jay to cook junk food so that he can smell it. Because Sasappis is a Native American, there is no real connection to the UK series, although the closest might be Romantic poet Thomas Thorne, since both characters have a way with words.
Isaac
A Revolutionary War captain who knew the likes of real-life figures Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr, Isaac Higgentoot unfortunately died of dysentery before he could make any lasting historical mark of his own. Killed by the disease sometime between 1775 and 1783, when the American Revolutionary War was taking place, Isaac now has the ghost power to make people smell sewage any time they walk through him.
Despite these circumstances, however, Isaac always maintains his pride, as evidenced when he has to negotiate with the Redcoats who also died on the property back in the day, including British officer Nigel, who Isaac has an obvious crush on despite having accidentally shot him. The U.K. version of Isaac is The Captain, who served in World War II and died of a heart attack. In both versions, Isaac and The Captain are both gay and express their love in each series.
Hetty
Sam and Jay’s house, Woodstone Manor, was built in the late 1800s by a family of robber barons, and it’s this lineage and time period that Hetty hails from. But Hetty has started to gradually let go of her antiquated notions and bigotries as Ghosts goes on. For the first two seasons, Hetty’s death was a mystery, but given the corruption she was a part of during her life and the vile nature of her husband Elias, she certainly had no shortage of enemies who might have wanted to off her. However, season 3 revealed the actual reason.
When Elias went missing and his debts and crimes ended up transferring to her, she barricaded herself in the library and died by suicide when she strangled herself with the telephone cord. As for ghost powers, Hetty hasn’t displayed any unique abilities yet but does manage to possess Jay in season 1, episode 10, which is something all ghosts seem capable of doing. Hetty’s UK version is Lady Stephanie “Fanny” Button.
