The next installment of anthology series American Horror Story won't begin production until summer, but already showrunner Ryan Murphy is teasing what we can expect from season 8 of the perpetually-creepy show. Or, rather, he's teasing who we can expect to show up this time around.
According to Murphy's interview with Entertainment Weekly, the FX series will welcome back three big cast members with open arms.
"Kathy [Bates] and Sarah Paulson have a lot of great stuff to get to do," Murphy told EW of the upcoming season. "So, with Evan Peters, the three of them are the leads this year."
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Peters and Paulson are two breakout stars of Murphy's series, and have been American Horror Story staples since season 1's Murder House. The series has a history of pairing the two up in one way or another: In season 6's Roanoke, they portrayed love interests, while in season 7's Cult, the two went head-to-head as bitter rivals.
Paulson will certainly be busy playing around in Murphy's universe: She has also signed on for two seasons of his upcoming series Ratched, in which Paulson will play the titular nurse who originated in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Bates first appeared on American Horror Story's third season, subtitled Coven, as racist serial killer Delphine LaLaurie. She re-teamed with Murphy again for Freak Show, Hotel, and Roanoke, but was absent for Cult as filming for her since-canceled Netflix series, Disjointed, conflicted.
Bates' return to the series could mean it will be extra creepy this time around: Her dual role on Roanoke as colonial killer The Butcher/struggling actress Agnes Mary Winstead was one of the most disturbing AHS had to offer.
But what will these cast members actually do this time around? Well, that's one thing that Murphy isn't so quick to divulge. Though rumors circulated that AHS would utilize the subtitle Radioactive for season 8 after it was revealed that 20th Century Fox secured the copyright for the title, the 9-1-1 producer wants to make sure we don't jump to conclusions.
"Well, that’s based on a fact that we’ve cleared a lot of titles for that show. It’s an interesting idea," Murphy teased to EW. "I can neither confirm nor deny."
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Previously, Murphy revealed at the Television Critic's Association press tour that there will be a major difference in season 8 compared with previous iterations of AHS.
"[Season 8 is] still topical, but [set in] the future, which I’ve never done," he told the TCA audience back in January. "I think people will like it. It's different from what we’ve done before."
With some of our favorites already set to return, I say it's a safe bet we'll put season 8 of AHS on our watchlist.
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