American_Horror_Story:_Apocalypse

<i>American Horror Story: Apocalypse</i>

American Horror Story: Apocalypse

Eighth season of the horror anthology television series


The eighth season of the American horror anthology television series American Horror Story, subtitled Apocalypse, features the witches from the New Orleans coven as they battle the Antichrist and attempt to prevent the world from ending. The season is presented as a crossover between Murder House, Coven, and Hotel. The ensemble cast includes Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Adina Porter, Billie Lourd, Leslie Grossman, Cody Fern, Emma Roberts, Cheyenne Jackson and Kathy Bates, with all returning from previous seasons, except newcomer Fern.

Quick Facts American Horror Story: Apocalypse, Starring ...

Created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for cable network FX, the series is produced by 20th Century Fox Television. Apocalypse set in 2026 was broadcast between September 12 and November 14, 2018,[1] consisting of 10 episodes. The season was announced in January 2017[2] and received positive reviews from critics, with the aesthetic, the well thought out crossover of seasons and performances of Paulson, Fern, Lange, Roberts and Bates being singled out for praise. Though the last few episodes received mixed reviews for its humour, pacing, unnecessary new characters and a rushed finale.

In April 2019, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which presents the Primetime Emmy Awards, announced that, for the first time in the series' history, a season would not qualify for the Limited Series categories, and would instead be moved to Drama.[3] Apocalypse was ultimately nominated to five categories, including Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for Jessica Lange.

Cast and characters

Main

Apocalypse main cast
Sarah Paulson
Evan Peters
Billie Lourd
Leslie Grossman
Cody Fern
Emma Roberts
Cheyenne Jackson
Kathy Bates

Special guest stars

Recurring

Guest stars

Episodes

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Production

Development

On January 12, 2017, the series was renewed for an eighth season, which premiered on September 12, 2018.[2][1] In October 2016, series co-creator Ryan Murphy announced a "crossover" season between previous cycles Murder House and Coven.[14] In January 2018, he stated that the ninth season would most likely feature the crossover;[15] however, in June 2018, he announced that the eighth season was chosen instead.[16] Murphy has also stated that the eighth season would be set 18 months in the future and would feature an Asylum and Coven tone.[15][17] In July 2018, it was announced at the San Diego Comic-Con that the title of the season would be Apocalypse.[18]

In April 2018, it was revealed that series veteran Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters would make their directorial debut in an episode.[19] It was later revealed that Paulson would direct the sixth episode.[20] Peters, in the end, did not direct an episode.

As with previous seasons, several teasers were released.[21] On September 4, 2018, a short trailer was released, followed by a longer trailer the next day.[22][23]

Casting

In October 2017, it was announced that series mainstay Sarah Paulson would return for the season. In March 2018, it was announced that Kathy Bates and Evan Peters would also return, leading the season with Paulson.[24] In April 2018, Joan Collins joined the cast as the grandmother of Peters' character.[17] In April and May 2018, Cult actors Adina Porter, Cheyenne Jackson, Billy Eichner, Leslie Grossman, and Billie Lourd were also confirmed to return.[25][26]

In June 2018, Emma Roberts revealed that she would return for Apocalypse, reprising her role as Madison Montgomery from Coven.[27] That same month, Murphy revealed that other witches from Coven had all been invited to return,[27] and also stated that he had asked Anjelica Huston to join the cast,[28] while Paulson confirmed that she would reprise her Coven role, Cordelia Goode.[20] In July 2018, it was reported that Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman and Kyle Allen would guest star in the season.[29] Later that month, Murphy revealed via Twitter that American Crime Story actor Cody Fern joined the cast as a grown-up Michael Langdon, the Antichrist born during the events of Murder House.[30]

In August 2018, Pose actor Billy Porter announced via Instagram that he would appear in the season.[31] Later, during the Television Critics Association press tour, it was announced that Jessica Lange would appear in the season's sixth episode as her Murder House character, Constance Langdon.[20] After FX released the season's first teaser, actress Lesley Fera revealed via Twitter that she would appear in the season premiere.[32] Later, Ryan Murphy confirmed via Twitter that Taissa Farmiga, Gabourey Sidibe, Lily Rabe, Frances Conroy, and Stevie Nicks would all appear during the season,[33] and that they would all reprise the roles they played in Coven.[34][35] In the same month, Angela Bassett, who appeared in four previous seasons, confirmed that she would not appear in the season;[34] however, Bassett appeared in the last episode of the season, playing Marie Laveau, the role she played in Coven. Later, Finn Wittrock, who appeared in three past seasons, confirmed that he would not appear in Apocalypse.[36] The same day, it was announced that original cast members Connie Britton and Dylan McDermott would be returning for the season,[37] and Ryan Murphy later confirmed that they would reprise their Murder House roles, Vivien and Ben Harmon, respectively.[38] Later, Murphy revealed that Evan Peters and Taissa Farmiga would be reprising their Murder House roles, Tate Langdon and Violet Harmon, respectively.[39]

In September 2018, it was revealed that Erika Ervin would be returning for Apocalypse after having a recurring role in Freak Show.[40] It was also reported that actress Ash Santos would appear in the season.[41]

Filming

In April 2018, Murphy revealed that filming for the season would begin in June 2018.[17]

Reception

Critical response

American Horror Story: Apocalypse received positive reviews, with many considering it as an improvement over the recent seasons. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the season a 79% approval rating, with an average rating of 6.95/10, based on 8 reviews. The critical consensus reads, "Ryan Murphy and his murderers' row of witchy performers literally save the world -- and franchise -- in Apocalypse, the series' most ambitious crossover swing yet."[42] On Metacritic, the season was given a score of 63 out of 100 based on 6 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[43]

American Horror Story (season 8): Critical reception by episode

Season 8 (2018): Percentage of positive critics' reviews tracked by the website Rotten Tomatoes[42]


Awards and nominations

In its eighth season, the series has been nominated for 20 awards. Five of them were won.

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Ratings

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  1. Live +7 ratings were not available, so Live +3 ratings have been used instead.

Home media

American Horror Story: Apocalypse – The Complete Eight Season
Set Details
  • 10 Episodes
  • 3 Disc Set (DVD)
  • 3 Disc Set (BD)
  • English & Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 2.0 Surround
  • Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
  • Runtime: 431 Minutes
Release Dates
Region 1 Region 2 Region 4
September 24, 2019 (2019 -09-24)[55] August 26, 2019 (2019 -08-26)[56] August 7, 2019 (2019 -08-07)[57]

References

  1. American Horror Story [@AHSFX] (June 28, 2018). "Not long now. #AHSFX" (Tweet). Retrieved June 28, 2018 via Twitter.
  2. Andreeva, Nellie (January 12, 2017). "'American Horror Story' Renewed For Seasons 8 & 9 By FX -TCA". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
  3. Ausiello, Michael (April 9, 2019). "Emmy Shake-Up: American Horror Story Booted From 2019 Limited Series Race". TVLine. Archived from the original on June 26, 2020. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  4. Metcalf, Mitch (September 13, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.12.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 13, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  5. Metcalf, Mitch (September 20, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.19.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 20, 2018. Retrieved September 20, 2018.
  6. Metcalf, Mitch (September 27, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.26.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on September 28, 2018. Retrieved September 27, 2018.
  7. Metcalf, Mitch (October 4, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.3.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 5, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  8. Metcalf, Mitch (October 11, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.10.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 12, 2018. Retrieved October 11, 2018.
  9. Metcalf, Mitch (October 18, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.17.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 18, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
  10. Metcalf, Mitch (October 25, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.24.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on October 26, 2018. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  11. Metcalf, Mitch (November 1, 2018). "Updated: ShowBuzzDaily's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.31.2018". Showbuzz Daily. Archived from the original on November 1, 2018. Retrieved November 1, 2018.
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  15. Hibberd, James (January 5, 2018). "American Horror Story shock: Season 8 is set in the future". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
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  17. Bentley, Jean (April 7, 2018). "'American Horror Story' Season 8: Evan Peters, Billy Eichner, Cheyenne Jackson, More Returning". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  18. O'Connell, Michael (August 3, 2018). "'American Horror Story': Jessica Lange Returning for 'Apocalypse'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 3, 2018.
  19. Alex, Stedman (September 4, 2018). "'American Horror Story: Apocalypse' Unveils First Teaser Trailer". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2018.
  20. Nickolai, Nate (September 5, 2018). "'American Horror Story: Apocalypse': The Anti-Christ Arrives in Full Trailer". Variety. Retrieved September 6, 2018.
  21. Stack, Tim (March 20, 2018). "American Horror Story: Kathy Bates to return for season 8". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  22. Bentley, Jean (April 7, 2018). "'American Horror Story' Season 8: Evan Peters, Billy Eichner, Cheyenne Jackson, More Returning". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
  23. Bentley, Jean (May 18, 2018). "Billie Lourd To Return To 'American Horror Story' For Season 8, Joins 'Booksmart' Movie". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 18, 2018.
  24. Ramos, Dino-Ray (June 17, 2018). "Emma Roberts Teases Return of 'American Horror Story's Madison Montgomery". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
  25. Munzenrieder, Kyle (April 4, 2018). "Joan Collins Is Joining American Horror Story Because, Well, of Course She Is". W Magazine. Retrieved June 19, 2018.
  26. Otterson, Joe (July 26, 2018). "'American Horror Story' Season 8 Casts Cody Fern as Michael Langdon". Variety. Retrieved March 15, 2020.
  27. Shoemaker, Allison (August 2, 2018). "Pose's Billy Porter joins the cast of American Horror Story: Apocalypse". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved August 2, 2018.
  28. Lesley Fera [@LesleyFera] (August 6, 2018). "Happy to announce that I will be on the first episode of this new creepy season 😱" (Tweet). Retrieved August 6, 2018 via Twitter.
  29. "One major American Horror Story: Coven star won't return for Apocalypse". Digital Spy. August 9, 2018. Retrieved August 9, 2018.
  30. Ramos, Dino-Ray (August 19, 2018). "'American Horror Story: Apocalypse': Ryan Murphy Posts First Look At 'Coven' Reunion With Stevie Nicks". Deadline. Retrieved August 19, 2018.
  31. Seddon, Dan (August 23, 2018). "American Horror Story star rules out a return for season 8 Apocalypse". Digital Spy. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  32. Birnbaum, Debra (August 23, 2018). "Connie Britton and Dylan McDermott Join 'American Horror Story: Apocalypse'". Variety. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
  33. Dino-Ray, Ramos (August 25, 2018). "'American Horror Story: Apocalypse': Ryan Murphy Gives First Look At 'Murder House' Reunion". Deadline. Retrieved August 25, 2018.
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  35. "23 HUGE Details In The 'AHS: Apocalypse' Trailer You Definitely Missed". PopBuzz. September 6, 2018. Retrieved September 7, 2018.
  36. "American Horror Story: Season 8". Metacritic. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
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  41. Welch, Alex (October 29, 2018). "'American Horror Story' and 'Walking Dead' remain on top of the cable Live +3 ratings for Oct. 15-21". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on October 29, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  42. "American Horror Story: Apocalypse". Amazon.com. July 12, 2021.
  43. "American Horror Story Season 8 [DVD] [2019]". Amazon.co.uk. August 26, 2019. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  44. "AMERICAN HORROR STORY: APOCALYPSE SEASON 8". Amazon.co.au. August 7, 2019. Retrieved July 12, 2021.

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