Series co-creator Ryan Murphy says the upcoming season will be very different without Jessica Lange on the lead as claiming, 'It's a true ensemble.'
- Jun 19, 2015
AceShowbiz - The cast line-up of "American Horror Story: Hotel" continues growing with another familiar face confirmed to return. Co-creator Ryan Murphy reveals in an interview with Deadline that Denis O'Hare has finalized his deal to join the upcoming fifth season of the FX anthology series. "We're just finalizing Denis O'Hare's deal, he's going to come back," he says.
O'Hare first joined the "AHS" series in the first season, playing Larry Harvey. He didn't take part in the second installment, "Asylum", but later returned for "Coven" and the most recent one "Freak Show".
Murphy doesn't share details of O'Hare's role on "Hotel", but dishes on other actors' parts. He says that Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters, who have "always been sort of the heroes, the good guy or the good lady so to speak," will be "playing absolute evil villains" this season. He also gushes that Lady GaGa's part "is bananas good."
He goes on sharing how the show will be different without Jessica Lange in the cast. "I also think that the thing that's different about the season is that before we've always been very driven by the Jessica Lange character. She was always the lead character. This year, it's a true ensemble and I think we have more male parts and more male stories," he teases, adding, "I guess it's a different tone this year than we've had."
Sharing the inspiration for "Hotel", he reveals, "It's based in the hotel in horror movies and horror tropes. We've researched several real-live hotels in downtown LA where absolutely horrifying things happened... Other people have the keys to your room; they can come in there. You're not exactly safe, it's a very unsettling idea."
While Lange won't return for "Hotel", Murphy says that the actress still leaves the door open for her return in the future. "All I can say about that never say never with Jessica. She and I are doing something else right now," he says of their Broadway project "A Long Day's Journey Into Night". He adds, "I think if I came up with something extraordinary for her, if I could come up with a great character, she's all about that, and she's told me that, if you have something great after I sort of get my rest then let's keep talking, so I'll do that."
Production on "Hotel" will begin in three weeks, so Murphy says. The cast also includes Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, Wes Bentley, Chloe Sevigny, Finn Wittrock and Max Greenfield.
