What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Jane's cruelty stems from a lifetime of jealousy and resentment. As a child, Jane was the celebrated star while Blanche watched from the sidelines, but by 1935, their roles reversed, Blanche became the famous actress while Jane's career faded. This reversal, combined with her alcoholism and delusion, twisted Jane's feelings into pure hatred, leading her to imprison and torment her sister.

Foreshadowing: The 1935 car crash into the mansion gate foreshadows the destructive nature of their relationship.

• jane hudson
• blanche hudson
• sisters
• jealousy
• fame

Blanche became paralyzed after a car accident in 1935. However, the full truth only emerges at the end, Blanche reveals that Jane was driving the car when it crashed, not Blanche as Jane had always claimed. This means Jane has been blaming Blanche for an accident Jane herself caused, adding another layer to Jane's guilt and delusion.

Foreshadowing: The 1935 car crash that destroys the mansion gate is the incident that leaves Blanche in a wheelchair.

• paralysis
• car accident
• blanche
• 1935

Jane killed Elvira because she saw her as a threat to her control over Blanche. Elvira was the only person who showed kindness to Blanche and who might help her escape or call for help. As Jane's paranoia intensified, she viewe Elvira as an obstacle to her twisted plan of keeping Blanche imprisoned and maintaining her delusional grasp on the situation.

Foreshadowing: Earlier scenes show Jane intercepting Blanche's mail and forbidding her from reaching out for help, establishing her pattern of silencing anyone who might assist Blanche.

• elvira stitt
• murder
• housekeeper
• death

Jane's breakdown resulted from a combination of factors: her fading fame, alcoholism, and years of resenting Blanche for overtaking her stardom. Living in the decaying mansion while caring for her paralyzed sister, Jane retreated into delusions of reviving her career, ultimately descending into paranoia and violence as her grip on reality loosened.

Foreshadowing: Jane's obsessive makeup and costume attempts to recreate her childhood glory hint at her disconnection from reality.

• mental illness
• breakdown
• delusion
• alcoholism

Jane intercepts Blanche's calls because she fears exposure. If authorities or outsiders discovered how Jane has been treating her sister, keeping her imprisoned, abusing her, and preventing her from seeking help, Jane would face serious consequences. Her control over Blanche represents the only power she has left, and losing it would shatter her remaining delusions of importance.

Foreshadowing: Jane's habit of sifting through and discarding Blanche's mail establishes her need to control all communication.

• phone call
• help
• control
• captivity

In the final confrontation on a deserted beach, Blanche reveals the truth about the 1935 car accident, that Jane was driving, not Blanche. This confession shatters Jane's self-deception. When police close in, Jane wanders away to perform for an imaginary crowd, completely lost in her delusions, while Blanche dies alone in the sand, victims of their toxic, intertwined fate.

Foreshadowing: The beach confrontation is set up by the police investigation that forces Jane to flee the mansion.

• beach ending
• blanche death
• jane madness
• police

The parakeet scene demonstrates the depth of Jane's cruelty and her need to inflict psychological pain on Blanche. By killing Blanche's beloved pet and placing it under her lunch tray, Jane shows she will destroy anything that brings Blanche comfort or joy, revealing her petty, vindictive nature and intensifying the psychological horror of her abuse.

Foreshadowing: The parakeet represents the final innocent thing Blanche has left, making its destruction a pivotal moment of malice.

• parakeet
• pet
• cruelty
• blanche

Edwin Flagg is a young pianist who responds to Jane's advertisement for musical accompaniment. His presence triggers Jane's nostalgic performance of her childhood hit "I've Written a Letter to Daddy." Edwin serves as an audience for Jane's delusion, briefly making her feel like a star again, while also providing uncomfortable tension as he witnesses the toxic household.

Foreshadowing: Jane's call for a pianist reveals her delusional attempt to stage a comeback performance.

• edwin flagg
• pianist
• comeback
• performance

Baby Jane became spoiled because her father Ray Hudson indulged her every whim while her mother disapproved and her sister Blanche envied her from the sidelines. With no one to set boundaries and everyone catering to her fame, Jane developed an entitled, self-centered personality that persisted into her adulthood and fueled her later breakdown when the world stopped adoring her.

Foreshadowing: The 1917 introduction establishes Jane's spoiled nature as the foundation for her later psychological unraveling.

• baby jane
• child star
• vaudeville
• spoiled

The rivalry began in childhood, when Baby Jane received all the attention and adoration while 11-year-old Blanche watched enviously from the margins. This early imbalance created deep-seated resentment in both sisters, Jane expected constant worship, while Blanche grew bitter watching her sister receive everything. By 1935, when Blanche's career eclipsed Jane's, the dynamic fully reversed, exploding the tensions that had simmered for decades.

Foreshadowing: The opening scene in 1917 establishes the envious dynamic that will define the sisters' entire relationship.

• rivalry
• sisters
• fame
• jealousy
• child star