FX Orders 'American Horror Story' to Series With Jessica Lange, Denis O'Hare, et al.

FX has placed a 13-episode order for its next original drama series, American Horror Story, co-created by former Nip/Tuck executive producers and current Glee co-creators/executive producers Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, announced John Landgraf, President and General Manager, FX Networks. American Horror Story begins production in Los Angeles on July 27 and will premiere on FX in October.

"We're thrilled to welcome Ryan and Brad back to their original home," said Landgraf. "They have shown an uncanny ability to bring original series to the air unlike any that have come before, and to reconcile 'wildly entertaining' with the 'creatively ambitious.' Once again, American Horror Story is a wholly unique and original take on its genre with richly drawn characters. The ability to put together a cast of stars such as Dylan McDermott, Connie Britton, Denis O'Hare, Frances Conroy and Oscar(R)-winner Jessica Lange speaks to the quality of the writing and storytelling. This series is going to blow audiences back in their seats, and we can't wait to have it on our air."

The pilot episode of American Horror Story, shot in Los Angeles, was written by Murphy and Falchuk, and it was directed by Murphy. In addition to Murphy and Falchuk, Dante di Loreto will also serve as Executive Producer of the series.

"Brad and I are excited to be back at FX where we enjoyed such a terrific relationship working with John Landgraf and his team through 100 episodes of Nip/Tuck," said Murphy. "The support of John, Dana Walden and Gary Newman on American Horror Story has been nothing short of amazing. Our cast is extraordinary and we can't wait to get started on production."

American Horror Story is produced by Twentieth Century Fox Television.

"Ryan and Brad are two of the most original voices working in television, and their singular vision is evident in every frame of American Horror Story," commented TCFTV Chairmen Dana Walden and Gary Newman. "Just as they delivered a brand new take on the musical comedy in Glee, they've completely reinvented the horror genre with this spellbinding series. Their script attracted a cast that is a virtual 'who's who' of award winning performers and the result is an electrifying piece of entertainment. It has long been our goal to bring this brilliant team back to John Landgraf and FX, where they had such success with Nip/Tuck. In American Horror Story, they are returning with something unlike anything else on the air that is a perfect fit for this channel's brand."

American Horror Story revolves around The Harmons, a family of three who move from Boston to Los Angeles as a means to reconcile past anguish. The All Star cast features Dylan McDermott (The Practice) as "Ben Harmon," a psychiatrist; Connie Britton (Friday Night Lights) as "Vivien Harmon," Ben's wife; Taissa Farmiga as "Violet," the Harmon's teenage daughter; Jessica Lange (Tootsie, Blue Sky, Grey Gardens) in her first-ever regular series TV role as "Constance," the Harmon's neighbor; Evan Peters (One Tree Hill) as "Tate Langdon," one of Ben's patients; and Denis O'Hare (The Good Wife) as "Larry Harvey." Guest stars for the series include Frances Conroy (Six Feet Under) and Alexandra Breckenridge (Dirt) as the Harmon's housekeepers; and Jamie Brewer as Constance's daughter.

American Horror Story is FX's 12th drama to receive a full 13-episode series order, and ninth out of the last ten drama pilots produced by the network to receive a series order. Other FX dramas include the Golden Globe Award winning Sons of Anarchy, the highest-rated series in the network's history; the acclaimed Emmy Award nominated hit Justified; the critically acclaimed series Terriers, and Lights Out; Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Damages; Emmy Award nominated The Riches; Dirt; the acclaimed Over There; Emmy and Golden Globe Award nominated hit Rescue Me; Emmy and Golden Globe Award winner Nip/Tuck; and Emmy and Golden Globe Award hit The Shield. FX is currently in production on two other drama series pilots, Outlaw Country, starring John Hawkes, Mary Steenburgen, Luke Grimes and Haley Bennett, and Powers, starring Jason Patric.

About the Producers

American Horror Story is Ryan Murphy's second series for FX. In 2003, he created the Emmy and Golden Globe Award winning Nip/Tuck for FX, which was ad-supported cable's #1 scripted series in delivery of Adults 18-49 for four consecutive years. In addition, he received an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series. He is Co-Creator/Executive Producer/Writer/Director the Emmy and Golden Globe Award winning musical comedy Glee for FOX, for which he won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series. Glee is the #1 scripted hour on broadcast television in delivery of Adults 18-49 and re-energized the music business. The live Glee Tour has played to sold-out audiences across the U.S, and Europe. He is Executive Producer of The Glee Project, a reality TV series on Oxygen. In feature films, Murphy wrote the adapted screenplays for Running With Scissors and Eat, Pray, Love, both of which he also directed. Brad Falchuk first teamed with Murphy as a Co-Producer/Writer in the first season of the Golden Globe and Emmy-winning drama Nip/Tuck, spending all seven seasons on the series and rising to Executive Producer. He is Co-Creator/Executive Producer/Writer/Director of the Golden Globe and Emmy Award winning musical comedy Glee for FOX. In addition to American Horror Story, Dante di Loreto is an Executive Producer of the Emmy and Golden Globe Award winning musical comedy Glee for FOX, and he is Executive Producer of The Glee Project on Oxygen.

About the cast

Dylan McDermott was nominated for an Emmy Award for his work on The Practice, in which he played attorney "Bobby Donnell." This role earned him three Golden Globe Award nominations and he won the award in 1999. Connie Britton garnered two Emmy Award nominations for her work on the critically acclaimed series Friday Night Lights in which she played "Tami Taylor." In addition, she has been nominated for two Television Critics Association (TCA) Awards for her work the series. Jessica Lange has been nominated for six Academy(R) Awards and has won the Oscar twice in her career as Best Actress in Blue Sky and Best Supporting Actress in Tootsie. She has 11 Golden Globe nominations and four wins for her work in King Kong, Tootsie, Blue Sky and A Streetcar Named Desire. In addition, Lange has three Emmy Award nominations and won the award for her role in Grey Gardens. For five seasons, Frances Conroy starred as "Ruth Fisher" in the hit HBO drama, Six Feet Under, winning the Golden Globe Award in 2004 and earning four Emmy Award nominations. A newcomer to acting, Taissa Farmiga appeared in Higher Ground, which was directed by and starred her sister, Vera Farmiga. In addition to his co-starring role on One Tree Hill, Evan Peters has also guest starred on Parenthood, The Office and The Mentalist. Denis O'Hare has been nominated twice for Broadway's Tony(R) Award: as Best Actor (Featured Role - Musical) for Assassins and as Best Actor (Featured Role - Play) in Take Me Out, for which he won the award. O'Hare was part of the ensemble of Milk, which was nominated for a Screen Actor's Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in Motion Picture.

 

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