Plot

A young newlywed arrives at her husband's imposing family estate on a windswept English coast and finds herself battling the shadow of his first wife, Rebecca, whose legacy lives on in the house long after her death.

After a whirlwind romance in Monte Carlo with handsome widower Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer), a newly married young woman (Lily James) arrives at Manderley, her new husband's imposing family estate on a windswept English coast. Naive and inexperienced, she begins to settle into the trappings of her new life, but finds herself battling the shadow of Maxim's first wife, the elegant and urbane Rebecca, whose haunting legacy is kept alive by Manderley's sinister housekeeper Mrs. Danvers (Kristin Scott Thomas).—Netflix

While working for Mrs. Van Hopper (Ann Dowd), in Monte Carlo, a young woman becomes acquainted with Maxim De Winter (Armie Hammer), a recent widower. After a brief courtship (they are all staying in the same hotel and the woman is free when Mrs Van Hopper is sick and ordered to rest by the doctor), they become engaged (when Van Hopper finds out about the affair, she decides to leave Europe and go to NY. The woman is distraught, and meets Max and tells him all about it).

They marry and then head to his mansion in England, Manderley. She meets Mrs. Danvers (Kristin Scott Thomas), the housekeeper, who was devoted to his first wife, Rebecca, who died in a boating accident. The staff and Maxim's friends also were fond of Rebecca. Mrs. Danvers emphasizes the new Mrs. De Winter's inferiority by comparison. Frank Crawley (Tom Goodman-Hill) is the estate manager.

Soon, Mrs De Winter finds that Maxin sleepwalks and goes to Rebecca's rooms at night, unconsciously. Mrs De Winter wanders around the property and finds an abandoned cottage near the beach. She meets groundskeeper Ben (Ben Crompton), who tells her that Rebecca had drowned and which is why Maxim hates the water. Everything in the house has Rebecca signature on it and soon, Mrs De Winter starts to hate Rebecca and everything to do with her. Mrs De Winter forcefully goes into Rebecca's rooms, where Mrs Danvers tells her how much Maxin used to love Rebecca and recounts all the ways in which Maxin used to enjoy her company, none of which he does with Mrs De Winter.

Jack Favell (Sam Riley), Rebecca's cousin, comes to visit, saying that Mrs. Danvers invited him. Learning of this infuriates Maxim, who had earlier banned Favell from the grounds, and accuses Mrs. De Winter (Lily James) of infidelity (Favell pretended to be a friend of Maxin and took Mrs De Winter for a horse riding lesson, and Maxin was away in London that day), which she denies. She confronts Mrs. Danvers for conspiring against her by inviting Favell, demanding her resignation. Mrs. Danvers insists Favell was lying. She also gives a sob story of how she came to the house with Rebecca (she had looked after her since she was a little girl).. Mrs Danvers tells Mrs De Winter that she is ready to help her settle into the new house.

The two (Mrs Winter and Mrs Danvers) begin working amicably together, with Mrs. Danvers assisting Mrs. De Winter in reviving the Manderley Costume Ball. Mrs. Danvers suggests that Mrs. De Winter choose a dress of a De Winter ancestor. When she wears the dress, guests are shocked and Maxim is furious. Mrs. De Winter learns that Rebecca wore the dress the previous year. Realizing that Mrs. Danvers had manipulated her and believing that Maxim now regrets their marriage, she flees. Mrs. Danvers reveals her contempt for the new Mrs. De Winter, believing she is trying to replace Rebecca. She tries to convince Mrs. De Winter to jump to her death from the window. However, she is thwarted by a nearby shipwreck brought from the storm. The ship is Rebecca's and her decomposed body is discovered on board.

This reopens the investigation into Rebecca's death. Maxim confesses to his wife that his marriage to Rebecca was a sham and that he always hated her. He states she was cruel, selfish, adulterous, and manipulative. On the night of her death, she told Maxim that she was pregnant with another man's child (Maybe Favell, her own cousin), which she would raise under the pretense that it was Maxim's. She placed his gun to her chest and stated that the only way to be free of her was to kill her. Enraged, Maxim pulled the trigger, then disposed of her body by placing it in her boat and sinking it. Despite his confession, Mrs. De Winter is relieved to know that Maxim loves her and resolves to support him during the investigation. Favell attempts to blackmail Maxim, claiming to have proof that Rebecca did not intend suicide, in a note she had written. Only Maxin, Mrs De Winter and the Doctor knew of Rebecca's visit to the Doctor in London, on the day of her death.

The trial shows Rebecca's boat to have been deliberately sunk. Testimony from Mrs. Danvers implies Rebecca's visit to a London doctor shortly before her death had to do with the pregnancy (and that Rebecca was having an affair with Favell). The prosecutor produces Maxim's check written to Favell for the note, and Favell accuses Maxim of murdering Rebecca. Maxim is placed under arrest. At Manderley, Mrs. Danvers reveals that Rebecca hated all the men in her life. Mrs. De Winter fires Danvers and locates Rebecca's doctor and reads Rebecca's file, which reveals Rebecca could not have been pregnant because of advanced uterine cancer and would have died within a few months. An investigator concludes Rebecca committed suicide by scuttling her boat, while Mrs. De Winter privately concludes that Rebecca wanted Maxim to kill her.

Absolved, Maxim and Mrs. De Winter drive home to find the mansion ablaze. A maid reveals that Mrs. Danvers started the fire and fled. Mrs. De Winter races to the cliffs, and finds Mrs. Danvers standing on a precipice. She pleads with Mrs. Danvers not to jump, but Mrs. Danvers curses the two of them to never know happiness and jumps into the sea and drowns. Awakening from a dream years later, Mrs. De Winter is with Maxim, as they search for their dream home.