“American Horror Story” has been extended for a fifth season, as FX Networks seem quite happy with the show’s performance. And looking at the overall reception the production has been enjoying, it’s no wonder. However, the producers of the show have been looking to explore some new horizons with its development, and John Landgraf, CEO of FX Networks, has confirmed that the fifth season is going to introduce some drastic changes in the configuration.
It’s not known exactly what this means yet, and what’s going to change for the new season – but fans already have some ideas about what to expect, naturally. Cast changes seem to be the most popular guess, and there are certainly many different possibilities about who can come back for the new season, and who might be left out of the picture. Jessica Lange, for example, has recently been rumored to not actually be coming back for season 5, although this remains unconfirmed at the moment.
The rumors started with a tweet by Ryan Murphy, who co-created the show – in the tweet, he thanked Jessica Lange “for everything”, but didn’t specify anything further. Lange herself has previously stated that she has different plans for her career after she’s done working on the show’s fourth season, as she wanted to work on some movie productions afterwards, and then start exploring entirely new areas of her life. So, with that in mind, it’s possible that the actress herself has no intention of returning to the show.
Landgraf himself has recently given an interview in which he stated that he has no idea about Lange and whether or not she’s coming back for season 5. Landgraf is apparently aware of quite a lot about the show, still, including details about the characters, the overall tone and setting of the season, and various details about the plot, but he has no idea about the actual cast. Landgraf has reportedly given Murphy complete creative freedom in choosing his actors, so it’s also up to him whether Jessica Lange is going to appear in season 5.
Many other actors have been eager to get back to the show though, and Lange is pretty much the only one who has stated otherwise so far. Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett and Lily Rabe have all made positive comments about their experiences working on the show, and are likely to be considered for additional episodes, but none of them have been confirmed to be coming back for season 5 yet. Plus, with the statements about the changes about to be introduced into the show, it’s possible that these characters may not even be in the picture anymore at all.