American Horror Story Season 10 - What We Know So Far

Since it hit FX's airwaves in 2011, Ryan Murphy's anthology series American Horror Story has drummed up plenty of acclaim and attention for its creepy, freaky one-season stories. With its first season, retroactively titled Murder House, American Horror Story set a new standard for the modern horror genre, mixing gore and classic ghost story tropes with dark sexuality, a spectacularly talented cast, and even a few jokes here and there.

In the years since, American Horror Story has taken audiences to the circus with Freak Show, let them stay in a haunted Hotel, joined a Cult, shown them one version of the Apocalypse, and locked them in an Asylum, just to name a few. The latest iteration, 1984, took viewers back in time to classic '80s slasher films, paying homage to these campy classics in a way only Murphy could possibly pull off. In early 2020, news broke that FX had renewed the show up through its lucky 13th season, meaning this upcoming tenth season could very well be a stepping stone towards crazier things to come.

With the landmark tenth season on the horizon in 2020, plenty of fans are curious about what Murphy is cooking up next, and it's anybody's guess what new scares the showrunner could craft. Here's everything we know so far about season 10 of American Horror Story, including the release date, plot, trailer, and core cast.

As far as concrete information about American Horror Story's mysterious tenth season goes, longtime AHS fans probably could have guessed most of the season's cast simply based on history. Murphy, like many showrunners, has spent years assembling a loyal and talented band of actors who frequently appear in his projects; thanks to AHS's loosely linked universe, he frequently turns to the same performers to appear in multiple seasons.

Murphy went ahead and announced the season's full cast list in a short Instagram video posted in February of 2019, with the names of each actor over footage of waves crashing on the shore and "Dead of the Night," a song by Orville Peck. Many of Murphy's regulars will return for the tenth season, including Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Kathy Bates, Leslie Grossman, Billie Lourd, Adina Porter, Lily Rabe, Finn Wittrock, all of whom have appeared in previous AHS seasons. (Paulson and Peters have been a part of the series since the beginning, but both were absent from 1984). One of the most exciting new additions, however, is Macaulay Culkin, who made a name as a child actor during Home Alone and has been picking up small roles on television since his glory days.

Murphy's Instagram video might have focused on waves crashing on the beach, but as far as any plot details go, that feels like pretty thin ground to try and figure out what the tenth season of American Horror Story could possibly be about.

Fans will note that Murphy loves campy, over-the-top situations and heightened horror, so the tone of the tenth season will surely fall into that mold, but when it comes to themes and settings, he's all over the map. From insane asylums to alien invasions to witches in the woods to bloodsucking vampires to carnival freaks, Murphy seems to have touched on pretty much every spooky, scary stereotype you can think of, but this creative showrunner will definitely be able to figure out a way to blow audiences away once the tenth season of American Horror Story hits airwaves. Between his stellar cast and his delightfully twisted mind — as well as the fact that ten seasons is a huge accomplishment in and of itself — fans definitely won't be disappointed.

Much like any plot specifics about the tenth season of American Horror Story, the premiere date is still a mystery. In anticipation of this exciting anniversary, Murphy has remained mum about when FX will bring AHS back, but fans might be able to make a few guesses based on the premiere dates of previous seasons.

As a prestige television event (the show has been nominated for Emmys before, and Jessica Lange even won one for her performance in Murder House) fans can safely assume that AHS will be a part of FX's fall programming, but the exact premiere date is still up in the air. Though the first five seasons — Murder House, Asylum, Coven, Freak Show, and Hotel — all waited until October for their premieres, the last four — Roanoke, Cult, Apocalypse, and 1984 — all showed up in early September, so despite a fall premiere being all but certain, it depends on when FX and Murphy want to get the ball rolling. As far as episode counts go, each season has spanned anywhere from 9 to 13 episodes, with 1984 clocking in as the shortest season with just 9 installments and Asylum, Coven, and Freak Show topping out at 13 each.

As of this writing, no trailer — other than Murphy's covert cast announcement — has surfaced just yet, but fans are well versed in the typical American Horror Story style of trailers, which has come to define the show throughout its run.

First, each trailer will give a small hint as to what the season might entail; sometimes, Murphy releases several trailers which each focus on a different object, and sometimes, as in the case of 1984, it's a sunny, happy scene that suddenly turns dark. Murphy also typically releases the signature opening credits before the seasons begin. During each new credits sequence, the show's familiar theme song, composed by Cesar Davila-Irizarry and Charlie Clouser, plays over a series of disturbing images, creepy objects, and razor-quick editing cuts, creating a foreboding source of both dread and excitement for all AHS and horror fans.