Everything We Know About Number Six's Mysterious Death on 'The Umbrella Academy'

There are a lot of characters to keep straight on Netflix's upcoming adaptation of The Umbrella Academy. The show is based on a series of comic books by Gerard Way, so the story and its characters have been established for quite some time. Some heroes' backstories are clear from the get-go, while others are a little more mysterious — particularly when it comes to Number Six on The Umbrella Academy.

According to Deadline, The Umbrella Academy focuses on dozens of siblings all suddenly born on the same day to different, unconnected women who showed no previous signs of pregnancy. Seven of these children are adopted by a billionaire named Reginald Hargreeves, who creates "The Umbrella Academy" in an attempt to teach these super-powered kids how to save the world. Number Six was one of those children.

His name was Ben Hargreeves, also known as "The Horror," but according to IGN, there's little information about him. His superpower was an "ability to unleash monsters living under his skin," but he died during one of the first Umbrella Academy missions. Now his siblings carry on without him, and there's just a statue left in his honor.

The comics don't divulge too much about Ben's death, so if the show wants to expand upon his story, they may be heading off the beaten path to do so. The Umbrella Academy wiki (which is a fan site, so take it with a grain of salt) reveals that in one issue, Allison ("The Rumor") tells Luther ("Spaceboy") that everyone blames him for Ben's death, but no specifics are given.

According to Collider, even though Ben is technically dead when the comic begins, he still shows up through visions and flashbacks. It's unclear exactly how the show will illustrate Ben, but IMDb lists actor Ethan Hwang in the part of "Young Ben," and he appears in a few promotional photos. So, the show will be featuring Ben at least in some capacity. At the start of The Umbrella Academy's story, the heroes are reuniting for the first time after going their separate ways years before. Ben's death seems like it will probably be a point of discussion, especially if it had lasting effects on the group.

Way, who fans will know as the frontman of My Chemical Romance, is heavily involved in The Umbrella Academy's production. He's told the showrunner and the writers exactly what his plans are for the comics — which he's still writing — so they can match the show closely to his vision in all aspects, including when it comes to Ben.

"What I did for Steve Blackman [showrunner] and the writers in that first writers room was to create an eighteen page document that laid everything out. Even of the graphic novels that haven’t come out yet," Way told Collider. "Which should equal eight when we’re all done. So I gave them the blueprint for what happens, because you do want to seed certain things in there for future series and the hope is that it’s a success so that you do a lot more of these."

Number Six's death will likely not be the only mystery this season on The Umbrella Academy, but with Way's involvement in the story, we're all in good hands no matter where the show goes with it.