American Horror Story teams with Universal's Halloween Horror Nights

As reported over at Blastr.com, Universal theme parks are getting a double dose of horror this autumn as FX’s anthology series American Horror Story teams up with Halloween Horror Nights in both Orlando and Hollywood.

Announced in a press release yesterday, the annual event at Universal Orlando Resort and Universal Studios Hollywood will include a maze featuring chapters from the “Murder House,” “Freak Show,” and “Hotel” seasons of creator Ryan Murphy’s show.

According to the release, the temporary attraction, opening Sept. 16, will expose guests to “twisted scenes from Murder House” where “evil spirits that possess the Harmon estate” and “decades of the tortured dead who previously resided there” will be unleashed.

The release continues:

“In Freak Show, guests will join a troupe of biological misfits in a sinister sideshow where they’ll be stalked by the murderous and deformed Twisty the Clown. Finally, guests will succumb to the warped desires of The Countess after checking in to the haunted Hotel Cortez, conceived from the beginning as a torture chamber for its customers.”

John Murdy, Creative Director at Universal Studios Hollywood and Executive Producer of Halloween Horror Nights, said AHS has been the “number one requested maze” from our guests.  Michael Aiello, Director of Entertainment Creative Development for Universal Orlando Resort, commented, “It's that constant evolution that makes this popular series a perfect fit for Halloween Horror Nights – and we can’t wait for our guests to experience some of the horror they’ve seen on the show."

The opening of the attraction also coincides with Season 6 of American Horror Story, which kicks off Sept. 14. Meanwhile, AHS joins Halloween Horror Nights mazes based on other successful horror properties The Walking Dead, The Exorcist, Krampus, Halloween II, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, as well as Freddy vs. Jason in Hollywood. Entering its 26^th year, Orlando’s HHN event will also include The Repository, an “immersive paranormal virtual reality experience.”

Check out the trailer for the attraction below, and let us know if you will be headed to Orlando or Halloween for HHN. 

-Aaron Sagers

Six Season Six Teasers Released for 'American Horror Story'

"Try to keep it dry."

FX has recently released six creepy (and some crawly) vague mini "teasers" for the sixth installment of American Horror Story. The series returns earlier than its normal late October premiere, with the first episode debuting on September 14.

We've always known the theme by now but what we can glean from the six teasers below is that there may be a connection to the "Murder House." It has also been revealed that it will take place in two time periods. Returning cast members include; Lady Gaga, Denis O’Hare, Cheyenne Jackson, Angela Bassett, Evan Peters, and Matt Bomer.

Check out the teasers and let us know your theories. Is that the Countess's baby with the most unsafe mobile ever? What's with the Texas Chainsaw Massacre allusion? More importantly, will you be tuning in?













-Larissa Mrykalo

M. Night Shyamalan to Take on "Tales From the Crypt"

According to TheWrap, M. Night Shyamalan and TNT will be resurrecting the cult-classic horror anthology, "Tales From the Crypt."

TNT reports that Shyamalan will be serving as executive producer for the upcoming 2 hour horror block. The segment featuring the Tales From the Crypt remake will have both new and original stories, in addition to an "American Horror Story"-esque one hour anthology and other content.

While this sounds alright in theory, Bloody Disgusting has reported a potentially major detractor to fans of the original.

No Crypt Keeper. Everyone's favorite deadtime story teller,voiced by John Kassir, was created for the HBO show and the network still owns the rights to the character. Kassir himself took to Twitter to share his opinion on the matter, saying:

This doesn't bode well...

This isn't to say that there won't be a new character stepping into his coffin. In fact, a hooded old man will be spinning yarns in front of a fireplace. Sounds very "Night Gallery," but it's not too far off from the classic EC comics.

While this is all new information, a lot could change between now and the release of the show. However, the feelings are overwhelming waves of 'meh.'

Will you be tuning in? Let us know what you think and check back here for updates!

-Nowal Massari

American Horror Hotel Stories: Haunted spots for scary stays in every state

BY AARON SAGERS

Although we're about to check out of the Halloween season, it doesn't mean the time is over to check into some scary action. In fact, all across the country there are haunted houses (and hotels, and B&Bs) worth a visit for year-round paranormal tourism.

As a lover of ghost stories, and professional paranormal pop culture nerd, I am often on the hunt for haunts, with my tastes leaning more towards comfortable hotels with a ghosty rep and less creaky old drafty mansions. This used to be a more daunting task, when establishments were reluctant to embrace their spectral folklore for fear they might attract the wrong crowd, appear less reputable, or basically scare away guests.

Thankfully, things have changed in the past decade or so, with the popularity of paranormal reality TV, such as Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures, and successful movies like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring. Now ghost stories are a selling point for many locations, and with American Horror Story currently taking on the hotels, I would not anticipate a good haunted hot spot to have much difficult in filling its vacancy.

I currently have a running tally of more than 100 supposedly haunted hotels, and I've stayed at a large number of them. And many have become well known in the mainstream, and dubbed some of the "most haunted" destinations in America.

The Stanley Hotel, aka The Shining hotel, is a part of pop culture in its own right - and for good reason. Shown above, the Estes Park, Colo., location is luxurious and set in the scenic Rocky Mountains. Meanwhile, the RMS Queen Mary, moored at Long Beach, Calif., is an ocean liner that carried civilian passengers and then troops during World War II. Now it is a tourist attraction, party venue, and the focus of many ghost hunts.

But what of the less-famous locations, and how do you hunt down your haunts? To that end, I have a beginner's guide of 50 haunts for all 50 states (plus Washington D.C.). This is by no means a comprehensive list, but is just to kickstart a spooky stay. In my search, I relied on active listings using Booking.com's database, and tried to lean towards the lesser-known. Don't just take my suggestions, or only use these listings. Instead, begin your own ghost hotel hunt.

Emma Roberts and Jamie Lee Curtis Cast in Ryan Murphy's 'Scream Queens'

Photo courtesy Fox via THR

It looks like a lot of screaming will be done in the fall of 2015. Not only will MTV be airing a reboot of "Scream" but Ryan Murphy is bringing us a 15-episode horror/comedy anthology series called "Scream Queens." The series order was announced in October and now we have two leading ladies cast. Appropriately, one is an iconic scream queen herself.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "American Horror Story" alum and current 'Freak Show' cast member, Emma Roberts and horror icon Jamie Lee Curtis will star in the hour-long "horrody" Fox series that will premiere next fall. Character details are being kept hidden but THR learned that the first season will be "revolving around a college campus that's rocked by a series of murders." Sounding a lot like American Horror Story,  "New settings and storylines will be featured in subsequent seasons of the anthology series."

Murphy caused some controversy when this was announced when he stated,“We hope to create a whole new genre — comedy-horror — and the idea is for every season to revolve around two female leads. We’ve already begun a nationwide search for those women, as well as 10 other supporting roles, and we’re very grateful to [Fox TV Group chairmen and CEOs] Dana [Walden] and Gary [Newman] for their enthusiastic support.” Why controversial? Comedy-horror is far from a "whole new genre" but hey, we'll give it a watch and report back on just how fresh an idea this series might be.

Let us know what you think of the idea behind the series and the casting news. We'll keep you posted on any further developments, including the premiere date.

-Larissa Mrykalo

'American Horror Story: Freak Show' Set to Get Freakier with Casting News

This season of Ryan Murphy's "American Horror Story: Freak Show" gets better with each episode, so prepare to be dazzled when some new faces show up under the big top. TV Line announced yesterday that Neil Patrick Harris, along with his husband David Burtka, will be guest starring in this season of the dark, FX drama.

Harris will be appearing as a chameleon salesman in episodes 11 and 12, with Burtka showing up in episode 13 to bring a little steamy action to Elsa Mars. While it is absolutely thrilling that Harris and Burtka will be guest starring, my excitement shot through the roof upon learning a familiar face was being resurrected.

Lily Rabe will be returning to the American Horror Story realm as Sister Mary Eunice of Asylum. According to Entertainment Weekly, "The reason for Sister Mary’s return involves Pepper (Naomi Grossman) and how she ended up going from the freak show to Asylum‘s titular institution, Briarcliff. Rabe’s appearance will be on AHS‘ 10th episode, which is their big winter cliffhanger."

So come one, come all and enjoy the rest of the season on FX, Wednesday's at 10 p.m. ET. Wir Sind Alle Freaks!

-Nowal Massari

'American Horror Story' Renewed For Fifth Installment

On the heels of a stellar fourth season premiere, FX is bringing back its Ryan Murphy-created anthology series, "American Horror Story," for a fifth installment. There is still a ton of Freak Show left but we can only speculate what the fifth season will entail. A haunted house, an asylum, a coven of witches, a freak show and...(insert your guess here).

Below is the complete press release and of course, we want your thoughts on the 13-episode order for season five. You can click here for a preview of the next Freak Show episode, "Massacres and Matinees" which airs Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET.

Full Press Release:
Producer Ryan Murphy’s Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning anthology miniseries “American Horror Story” has paid big dividends as his newest installment, “American Horror Story: Freak Show,” has broken all ratings records for FX with its premiere episode last Wednesday night (10/8/14).

In light of that record-setting performance, FX has rewarded “American Horror Story” with a 13-episode order for the fifth and next installment of the show, which will debut in October 2015, it was announced today by John Landgraf, CEO, FX Networks and FX Productions.

'American Horror Story: Freak Show' Premieres October 8

According to "Entertainment Weekly," FX's has announced the premier date of the hotly anticipated fourth season of the best creepfest around "American Horror Story," along with an 11 second teaser trailer!

Be sure to clear your calendar for Wednesday, Oct. 8 at 10 p.m. -- that's when the freak show is coming to town!

"AHS: Freak Show" stars many familiar faces from Horror Story's past, including Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, Sarah Paulsen and Angela Bassett.

Check out the teaser trailer below!

-Roxy Orcutt 

Sarah Paulson's Character Revealed for 'American Horror Story: Freak Show'

Courtesy Sarah Paulson

The next season of "American Horror Story" is creeping around the corner, and with theme like "Freak Show," viewers can expect a lot of surprises. With a stellar cast, including veterans from previous seasons, we've learned very little about the actual characters on the show. Enter the lovely Sarah Paulson.

Earlier, the actress took to her Twitter account to reveal to her fans that she will be portraying not one, but two characters on the show! The actress will be pulling double duty as Bette and Dot, a member of the sideshow with two heads.

“So excited to be playing Bette AND Dot this season. Two heads are better than one! #AHSFREAKSHOW
-@MsSarahPaulson ”

Set in 1950s Florida, "American Horror Story: Freak Show" will follow a German woman (played by Jessica Lange) who runs one of the last sideshows in the United States. In a predictable, yet eternally terrifying turn, showrunner Ryan Murphy unveiled that the main baddie of the upcoming fourth season will be called "the Clown Killer." Swell.

The fourth season is expected to begin its 13 episode run in October and while this season will be Jessica Lange's last, it is shaping up to be absolutely amazing. We are curious to see what oddities will be revealed next! Perhaps the elusive Bearded Lady will finally be unveiled? Stay tuned!

-Nowal Massari

New Details Revealed About 'American Horror Story: Freak Show'

An exclusive over at Entertainment Weekly revealed a key detail about the upcoming "American Horror Story: Freak Show" and those suffering from coulrophobia are in for a real treat...nope. Ryan Murphy dished with EW on the new season that's set in a 1950s Florida freak show run by a German. That German will be played by AHS regular and fan-favorite, Jessica Lange and she's always been a fan of this setting, according to Murphy.

Regarding "Freak Show," Murphy revealed, “It was always a concept that Jessica and I talked about really early on. It was always her favorite one, which I thought was funny. I’ve had many different versions that I’ve run by her. I just love it. It feels really right. I thought it was going to be light but it’s turning out to be quite terrifyingly dark, which it feels much more like the Asylum season. But look — if you have a character named the Clown Killer, it’s going to be dark.”

Um, Clown Killer? So is it a killer clown or a killer who murders clowns, because the latter sounds much more appealing. No judgement. Murphy confirms that it's not the latter, “Yes. The most terrifying clown ever!” But we already suspected a scary clown, right? They also asked about if Murphy will feature that lovely freak show staple, the Bearded Lady, "Yes. Our version of it.” Oh we're sure their version won't be run-of-the-mill. It better not be.

The circus comes to town this fall...most likely in October.

-Larissa Mrykalo

"American Horror Story: Freak Show" Has More Casting News!

Recently, Ryan Murphy revealed that the upcoming fourth season of his spooky hit show would be "American Horror Story: Freak Show." While it will be Jessica Lange's last season on the show, she is returning to lead the cast as a German ex-pat who manages one of the last freak shows in the states.

Earlier, Entertainment Weekly revealed that Michael Chiklis would be joining the fourth season ensemble. Known for his tough guy roles, Chiklis will be portraying Kathy Bates' ex-husband and father to Evan Peters' character.

According to a live Tweet feed from the AHS: Coven panel at PaleyFest2014, Angela Bassett, Frances Conroy, Gabourey Sidibe, Dennis O'Hare, Jamie Brewer, Emma Roberts and Sarah Paulson will be returning for the upcoming, and it was hinted that castmates from the first two seasons may be returning as well!

Who do you think will join the Freak Show? Let us know!

-Nowal Massari

Ryan Murphy Confirms Title for "American Horror Story" Season 4!

Fan-made image via Iridescent Pictures

Recently, "American Horror Story" writer Douglas Petrie revealed during a Nerdist podcast that the fourth season of the hit show would take place at a carnival. At the time he stated that it didn't have a title, but that the carnival theme was "very roughly the idea" for the new season.

Well, earlier today show-runner Ryan Murphy took to his Twitter account and confirmed the fourth season title as "American Horror Story: Freak Show."

“It’s set in 1950. If you look historically what happened in the year 1950, there’s some more clues in that year. It’s a period piece. We try and do the opposite of what we’ve done before. Jessica Lange has already started practicing her German accent so I’m very excited!,” Murphy previously stated in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

While he and other crew-members had previously denied the fan-made posters for a circus themed fourth season, it appears that they've had this idea in mind for quite some time. The fourth season of "American Horror Story" will be the last for star Jessica Lange, and will debut in October on FX.

UPDATE: After announcing "American Horror Story: Freak Show" would be the official title of the upcoming fourth season, Entertainment Weekly has provided some additional information regarding the cast and plot! EW revealed-

"Set in Jupiter, Florida, in 1950, Freak Show finds Jessica Lange playing a German ex-pat who is managing one of the last freak shows in the U.S. Her group of “unusuals”- Kathy Bates, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, and Frances Conroy all play performers whom Lange’s character has rescued; Denis O’Hare and Emma Roberts are also in talks to return. Freak Show’s 13 episodes will track this group as they do anything to keep their business around."


-Nowal Massari

Writer for 'American Horror Story' Confirmed its Season Four Theme...Carnival

Thanks to a Nerdist podcast, we now know the setting of the fourth series of "American Horror Story." The reveal came from the show's writer and co-executive producer, Douglas Petrie.  According to the Huffington Post, When first asked about it, he quickly responded, "I can say nothing." Then Moira Kirkland, a writer for "Castle" and "Arrow" also on the podcast, said, "Well I don't know if it's true, but I heard carnival." Petrie responded, "Yes -- that was the, it -- it does not have a title." It's around the 33-minute mark that this is revealed so you can click here and listen for yourself when Ben Blacker asked him about the setting and Petrie replied,"That's the idea, that's very roughly the idea."

So we don't have definitive details but we at least have the setting on which to speculate. FX did not comment, however. We did have the clue from Ryan Murphy that Jessica Lange was practicing her German accent and it would be set in 1950, “It’s set in 1950. If you look historically what happened in the year 1950, there’s some more clues in that year. It’s a period piece. We try and do the opposite of what we’ve done before. Jessica Lange has already started practicing her German accent so I’m very excited!” Hmmmm...thoughts? A Freak Show would certainly fit the theme of the series and there are already posters with fan art depicting this carnival/circus setting. Oh no...clowns!

We'll definitely keep you posted. Petrie mentions that "Nothing is too extreme for 'American Horror Story.'"

-Larissa Mrykalo

'American Horror Story: Coven' Recap: 'The Sacred Taking'

BY KARL PFEIFFER

Another winner! Good to see "AHS" consistently in its stride a bit past its halfway point for the season.

We kick this week off with another great cold open ... though it had its shaky moments. We follow Queenie as she wanders a sketchy (but way cool and well-filmed) highway underpass, where she turns the tables on a would-be assaulter and hacks him to death before ripping his heart out. But, in an initially-oddly-out-of-place moment, she's interrupted by Zoe and Madison, who try to convince her to return to the coven. Queenie balks and asserts her new voodoo allegiance, warning of a coming war and declaring the coven's comparative weakness. Queenie's steadfastness seemed a bit unearned, but it works well to foreshadow the coming showdown and works nicely balancing the eventual re-uniting of the coven by episode's end.

'American Horror Story' Returning For Fourth Installment

Courtesy FX

FX just announced that “American Horror Story” will return in 2014 for its fourth installment. The network has ordered 13 hours of the yet-to-be-titled miniseries from Twentieth Century Fox Television.

The announcement came from John Landgraf, CEO, FX Networks and FX Productions:

Put simply, Ryan Murphy is a master television producer. Time and time again he reinvents the form. What he, co-creator Brad Falchuk and their producers Dante Di Loreto, Tim Minear, Jennifer Salt, James Wong, Brad Buecker, Jessica Sharzer, Douglas Petrie, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon, Alexis Martin Woodall and the entire production team and cast responsible for the ‘American Horror Story’ franchise have done is nothing short of extraordinary. Every year, they create a riveting and brilliant new miniseries. "AHS: Coven" is the best yet, and I have no doubt that the next installment will be even better.

“Coven” has already been a ratings powerhouse and has surpassed the ratings of the previous installments. According to the press release, “Season-to date, AHS: Coven is averaging 7.74 million Total Viewers, 5.46 million Adults 18-49 and 3.14 million Adults 18-34, which are increases of +77% in Total Viewers, +67% in Adults 18-49 and +60% in Adults 18-34 over AHS: Murder House. Coven is outpacing AHS: Asylum by +83% in Total Viewers, +71% in Adults 18-49, and +68% in Adults 18-34.”

Jessica Lange is scheduled to return for the fourth installment as per her contract, but is said to be departing after that run.

Nine new episodes remain in “Coven” with “Burn, Witch, Burn!” airing tonight on FX at 10 p.m. ET. "Coven"'s final episode will air on January 29.

-Larissa Mrykalo

'American Horror Story: Coven' Recap: 'Fearful Pranks Ensue'

Courtesy FX

BY KARL PFEIFFER

Oh, "American Horror Story," what do we do with you?

In keeping with the overall tone of the season, this week's episode of "AHS" lightened the tone after last week's jaw-dropper.

The episode kicks off with Fiona dealing with the aftermath of last week's carnage. She cuts the still-living head from the minotaur and sends it back to a now-enraged Marie Laveau, and breathes life into a freshly-dead Queenie. Meanwhile, Zoe loses track of her zombie boyfriend, Kyle, just before her attempt to euthanize the poor bastard. Peters is around this episode just long enough to bang his head bloody against the bathtub with guilt and frustration (which automatically gives that zombie more of a soul than half the "Coven"). And we learn that Cordelia's husband isn't so sweet and charming as we might've thought, hooking up with a familiar-looking Internet-found redhead, Kayleigh, before putting a bullet through her melon.

'American Horror Story: Coven' Recap: 'The Replacements'

BY KARL PFEIFFER

Well. Get ready for spoilers.

If there was any doubt that the third season of "American Horror Story" would tackle disturbing issues with no character remaining safe until the final moment of the season finale, rest assured.

This week, Zoe goes out of her way to make contact with Kyle's distraught mother, her conscious getting the better of her as she steals the half-healed Kyle from wood-dwelling Misty. I think it's safe to say no one expected Kyle's homecoming to be an easy one, but I don't think any of us saw the incest angle coming.

You heard me right.

'American Horror Story: Coven' Recap: 'Boy Parts'

BY KARL PFEIFFER

Following the smash premiere of the third season of "American Horror Story" (the numbers registered at five and a half million viewers, more than doubling season two's finale), episode two, "Boy Parts," hits the ground running, as the season's plots begin to take off (like a witch on a broomstick, perhaps?)

Picking up where we left off, Fiona is keeping Delphine LaLaurie under lock and key, her motivations made clear that she's after whatever potion is at the heart of LaLaurie's apparent immortality. Fiona follows the story to Marie Laveau's hair salon, where the two women exchange a back-and-forth that downright sizzles. It's a testament to the writing staff as much as the actresses, with the hard-to-miss parallels between historical issues and racism paired alongside the witchy banter.

'American Horror Story: Coven' Or 'X-Men: The Phantom Menace Of Hogwarts'

BY AARON SAGERS
“American Horror Story: Coven” might share more pop culture DNA with geek culture than horror and the supernatural. Sure, the third season of the anthology series revolves around witchcraft and voodoo, but I mainly noticed all the homages to “X-Men,” “Star Wars” and the Harry Potter books.

Personally, I happily exist as a well-rounded geek who loves horror, super heroes, fantasy and more. And, not to lean on my Campbell too much, but the archetypes and themes of great stories are often repeated. So it is possible I could be reading too much into this but there were multiple shout outs to mutants, Muggles and Siths than can be dismissed -- and we should all know by now that "AHS" creator Ryan Murphy loves his shout outs.

These are just the five I noticed in the first episode of Season Three. Whether these continue or not, we’ll see soon enough, but based on the premiere alone, I’m ready to re-name “American Horror Story: Coven” to “X-Men: The Phantom Menace of Hogwarts.” Let me know what I missed.

'American Horror Story: Coven' Recap: 'Bitchcraft'

BY KARL PFEIFFER


As for the premiere of the third season of "American Horror Story"? A show with two solid seasons under its belt, both as a thematic and stylistic powerhouse, and a premiere episode entitled "Bitchcraft"?

Expectations exceeded.

The season premiere of "Coven" not only introduced us to Zoe, a "gifted" young girl with a remarkable and terrifying secret, as has been publicized for weeks, but also a witchy New Orleans school one part terrifyingly sexy, one part home for a hodgepodge of misfits. We get an idea of Jessica Lange's new fixations: How being head "Supreme" can go to her head as she instates herself in charge of this slim coven. We're dosed with rapid-fire flashbacks to the state of witchcraft in a post-Salem and New Orleans America. As well as another star-crossed relationship between Zoe and frat-boy Kyle (reuniting Evan Peters with first season's Taissa Farmiga). And we get a host of young witches, each with their own issues to work through.