The current season of American Horror Story has been one of the more impressive in the FX series’ long run, delivering twists without the show’s bad habit of throwing everything at the wall to see if it sticks. However, American Horror Story: 1984 has also been notable for not featuring many of the series’ mainstays, including Evan Peters and Sarah Paulson. This gap will reportedly be fixed in season 10, though, according to showrunner Ryan Murphy.
Rarely missing the chance to tease his audience, Murphy revealed that fans will be seeing many of their favorites return for an as-unconfirmed plot. Speaking to Deadline, he had this to say about the casting process:
“We’re working on an idea for season 10 that I think people will love because it’s about reuniting fan-favorite actors to come back. Because it might be our last season. It’s the last season we have contracted. So, I’ve been quietly reaching out to various people. Some people I haven’t reached out to yet because I was like ‘Do I have a role for them?’ So far, everybody I reached out to said ‘Yes’, so that’s been great.”
Season 10 of American Horror Story is the last to be ordered by FX, and given Murphy’s many other commitments (and deal with Netflix), it may well be the last entry we get. If this does turn out to be the case, American Horror Story: 1984 and last year’s American Horror Story: Apocalypse have certainly brought the series back to its best. Indeed, the slasher themes of 1984 have only been the window dressing on one of the more inventive storylines from Murphy and company, all the more impressive for how they kept these surprises hidden right up to the season premiere.
We’d certainly like to see Paulson and Peters make a comeback, although American Horror Story: Apocalypse is hard to beat in terms of how it linked together the different parts of the franchise. Considering the many different directions and horror genres Murphy has referenced since the series’ debut in 2011, it’s hard to say where the next and possibly final season of American Horror Story will go. We’ll be sure to let you know though when there’s more news from Murphy. Although, given his approach to 1984, it’s likely he’ll remain tight-lipped for as long as possible.