American Horror Story

***American Horror Story*** (sometimes abbreviated as ***AHS***) is an American anthology supernatural horror drama television series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX. Each season is conceived as a self-contained miniseries, following a different set of characters and settings, and a storyline with its own "beginning, middle, and end." Some plot elements of each season are loosely inspired by true events. Many actors appear in more than one season, but often play a new character. Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson, and Lily Rabe have returned most frequently, all appearing in nine of the ten seasons with Frances Conroy appearing in seven and Kathy Bates appearing in six. Other notable actors such as Denis O'Hare, Jessica Lange, Emma Roberts, Jamie Brewer, Angela Bassett, Adina Porter, and Finn Wittrock appear in five of the ten seasons.

The first season, retroactively subtitled *Murder House*, takes place in Los Angeles, California, during 2011, and centers on a family that moves into a house haunted by its deceased former occupants. The second season, subtitled *Asylum*, takes place in Massachusetts, during 1964, and follows the stories of the patients and staff of an institution for the criminally insane. The third season, subtitled *Coven*, takes place in New Orleans, Louisiana, during 2013, and follows a coven of witches who face off against those who wish to destroy them. The fourth season, subtitled *Freak Show*, takes place in Jupiter, Florida, during 1952, and centers around one of the last remaining American freak shows and their struggle for survival. The fifth season, subtitled *Hotel*, takes place in Los Angeles, California, during 2015, and focuses on the staff and guests of a supernatural hotel. The sixth season, subtitled *Roanoke*, takes place in North Carolina, during 2014–2016, and focuses on the paranormal events that take place at an isolated farmhouse haunted by the deceased Roanoke colony. The seventh season, subtitled *Cult*, takes place in the fictional suburb of Brookfield Heights, Michigan, during 2016–2017, and centers on a cult terrorizing the residents in the aftermath of the 2016 U.S. presidential election. The eighth season, subtitled *Apocalypse*, features the return of the witches from *Coven* as they battle the Antichrist from *Murder House* in an attempt to prevent the apocalypse. The ninth season, subtitled *1984*, takes place outside of Los Angeles, during the titular year, 1984, and focuses on a group of young staff members at a summer camp getting ready to reopen after a massacre. In August 2018, the series was greenlit for a tenth season. In January 2020, FX renewed the series for three more seasons.

Although reception to individual seasons has varied, *American Horror Story* largely has been well received by television critics, with the majority of the praise going towards the cast, particularly Jessica Lange, who won two Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award for her performances. Kathy Bates and James Cromwell each won an Emmy Award for their performances, while Lady Gaga won a Golden Globe Award. The series draws consistently high ratings for the FX network, with its first season being the most-viewed new cable series of 2011.