American Horror Story: Freak Show
Fourth season of American Horror Story set in a 1952 freak show.
American Horror Story: Freak Show is the fourth season of the American horror anthology television series American Horror Story, created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX. Set in 1952 Jupiter, Florida, the season follows one of the last remaining freak shows in the United States and its performers' struggle for survival. It aired from October 8, 2014, to January 21, 2015, consisting of 13 episodes, and became FX's most-watched program ever, surpassing its previous installment, Coven.
- Network
- FX
- Premiere date
- October 8, 2014
- Finale date
- January 21, 2015
- Number of episodes
- 13
- Setting
- Jupiter, Florida, 1952
- Showrunners
- Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk
- Production company
- 20th Century Fox Television
Lore & Background
The season features an ensemble cast including Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Michael Chiklis, Frances Conroy, Denis O'Hare, Emma Roberts, Finn Wittrock, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, and Jessica Lange. All except newcomers Chiklis and Wittrock returned from previous seasons. This season marks the first not to be strictly anthological, as Lily Rabe, Naomi Grossman, and John Cromwell reprised their roles from the series' second cycle, Asylum. The premiere episode attracted a series high of 6.13 million viewers, making it the most viewed episode of the series.
Reader's Guide
American Horror Story: Freak Show garnered a total of twenty Emmy Award nominations, the most for any season of American Horror Story to date, including nominations for Outstanding Limited Series and six acting nominations for Lange, O'Hare, Wittrock, Paulson, Bassett, and Bates. Sarah Paulson won for Best Supporting Actress in a Movie or Limited Series at the 5th Critics' Choice Television Awards. The season received mostly positive reviews, with a 77% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a Metacritic score of 69 out of 100. Its legacy includes being FX's most-watched program ever and setting a record for Emmy nominations within the series.
Did You Know?
- The season features the largest set ever constructed for American Horror Story, including an entire city built for filming.
- Naomi Grossman's character Pepper marks the first time a character appeared in multiple seasons of the series.
- The premiere episode attracted a series high of 6.13 million viewers.
- The season garnered twenty Emmy Award nominations, the most for any season of American Horror Story.
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