The wait is finally over, with fans finally receiving their first glimpse at the long-awaited upcoming 13th season of “American Horror Story.”
Rumors have been rampant due to various casting news, with fans initially believing the upcoming season would be a throwback to the critically acclaimed “Coven” season, which focused on a coven of modern-day witches in New Orleans.
As it turns out, that’s only one of the previous chapters to be revived in the upcoming season, which will encompass characters and storylines from the horror anthology’s 12 earlier seasons.
The Gang’s All Here
The new trailer introduces an array of characters from the previous seasons, beginning with deranged Twisty the Clown (John Carroll Lynch) from Season 4’s “Freak Show.”
Also featured is Evan Peters as Kai Anderson from the “Cult” season, and Jessica Lange as Constance Langdon along with Rubber Man from Season 1 (“Murder House”). For fans of the “Coven” season, Sarah Paulson is seen as Cordelia Goode, alongside Angela Bassett as voodoo queen Marie Laveau and Emma Roberts as Madison Montgomery.
Even more intriguingly, however, is the presence of Paul Anthony Kelly, who starred in “AHS” producer Ryan Murphy’s “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette.” He is seen as a mystery character, appearing alongside a snake in a bathtub.
‘Like the Avengers’
Previously, while promoting “The Shards,” Murphy dropped a bombshell about the upcoming season by confirming the “Coven” rumors while also simultaneously denying them.
“Everybody thinks it’s a ‘Coven’ season and it’s not. It’s all the seasons,” Murphy said, revealing the upcoming season would weave together the 12 previous seasons.
“Sarah Paulson is playing six or seven roles. Jessica Lange is playing all four of her iconic characters. Evan Peters is playing five characters,” Murphy explained.
“It is like the Avengers,” he declared. “They all come together to defeat the ultimate evil.”
Assembling the Dream Team
FXIn the interview, Murphy detailed the intricacies of putting together his all-star “American Horror Story” cast.
One particular challenge was enticing Lange to return, given that she’d previously announced she wouldn’t be coming back to the show after playing multiple characters over the years.
“As soon as I pitched it to them — many of them had said ‘no’ over the years — they were like, ‘Well, okay, I’ve gotta come back for that,’” Murphy said.
“But I pitched Jessica Lange and she was like, ‘Oh [expletive], now I gotta do it,’” Murphy added.
“It’s all of them in one season and it’s 13 episodes because it’s called ‘13,’” he teased. “I spent many, many months and many years writing it. I wanted to do 13 in a special way.”
An All-Star ‘American Horror Story’
Along with all the other actors mentioned by Murphy, the 13th season of “American Horror Story” will welcome back Kathy Bates, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, Leslie Grossman and Alex Consani,
Ariana Grande had been announced as star of the upcoming season in what would have been her “American Horror Story” debut; however, scheduling conflicts with her tour forced her to pull out.
“Bringing together an all-star cast, many of whom are reprising fan favorite roles, ‘American Horror Story: 13’ continues to build on the anthology’s decades-long legacy that has been streamed more than 700 million hours across the globe and spawned a legion of dedicated fans,” reads the official logline.
“‘American Horror Story’ has redefined the genre with various installments featuring a creepy murder house, a coven of witches, a traveling freak show, a haunted hotel and the apocalypse itself,” the logline continues. “Which iconic horrors will return to haunt the hallowed halls of 13 and what new terrors await? Light your candles, draw your pentagrams and prepare for a supreme surprise.”
The 13th season of “American Horror Story” debuts September 24 on FX.
