Image Credit: Prashant Gupta/FX
Attention American Horror Story fans: hope you didn’t get too attached to the Harmon mansion and most of its inhabitants. Creator Ryan Murphy told reporters today that season 2 of the hit FX drama will begin with a new locale and a (mostly) new cast.
That means fans may — or may not — get another fix from stars like Jessica Lange, Dylan McDermott, and Connie Britton when the drama returns next year. “Some of them will be coming back,” Murphy teased during a teleconference today. “I’m talking to several of them and we’re in negotiations. There will be familiar faces, but there will also be new faces on the show.”
Murphy hopes to announce the new storyline and cast in February.
Should some of the first season actors return for another round of AHS episodes, they’ll be “playing completely different characters, creatures, and monsters,” Murphy added. ”It’s a really fun idea to do an anthology show. That’s the way it was designed from the beginning. Every season, there will be a new haunting and we’ll have a new overriding theme.”
The drama’s unique mission has made it easier to attract top talent, Murphy acknowledged. He’s heard from many film stars who like the idea of not having to commit to so many seasons. “When we met with Connie, Dylan, and Jessica, they were interested because the story had a beginning, middle and an end. Connie just came off of Friday Night Lights and was not interesting in going back into the grind of a 5-year commitment. When I told her she only had to do a 1-year run, she was excited by that.”
Added Murphy, “I would have all of them back in a heartbeat to play someone completely different.”
But the mansion is definitely history, Murphy admitted. The set was already struck to move “onward and upward.” So long, original craftsman fixtures and solid oak floors!
The AHS finale on Wednesday averaged 4.4 million viewers, making it the most watched episode of the series. The show is currently tied with TNT’s Falling Skies as the No. 1 new show among adults 18-49 this year. It’s already the highest-rated first season show in FX’s history.
FX notes that AHS performed 50 percent better than Murphy’s last creation, Nip/Tuck.
Read more:
Creator Ryan Murphy talks the game-changing finale
‘American Horror Story’: Top 10 craziest moments
EW Recaps: American Horror Story
