Ariana Grande will not appear in American Horror Story Season 13 when it premieres on September 24. She did not shoot any scenes for the new season, ending the speculation around her announced role before the series returns.
That answer matters now because the season is almost here, and Grande had been one of its most eye-catching additions. The cast was seen filming exterior scenes without her, a detail that only made her absence harder to miss. Emma Roberts remains part of the broader ensemble tied to the season, but Grande is not joining them on screen.
Grande was unable to make her AHS debut because of conflicts tied to changes in the production dates of the horror series and her Eternal Sunshine Tour. At the end of June, she reshuffled select July concerts to keep the tour moving. Her July 12 stop at Brooklyn's Barclays Center was moved to July 14, while her July 22 and July 24 shows in Boston were shifted to July 23 and July 26. The tour continues next with stops in New York, Canada, Chicago and London.
The production itself has also kept moving. Two previously unannounced names, Frances Conroy and Alex Consani, were spotted shooting exterior scenes, alongside a group that includes Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Jessica Lange, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, John Waters and Leslie Grossman. John Carroll Lynch, Mena Suvari and Matt Fraser are said to be returning as characters they have played in other American Horror Story installments, while Paul Anthony Kelly, Berto Colón and Joey Pollari are set for franchise debuts.
What remains under wraps is the season's focus, and that silence now cuts both ways: the show is close enough to air that every absence is noticeable, but the story it is telling still has not been revealed. For viewers waiting on September 24, the clearest takeaway is that American Horror Story Season 13 is moving ahead without Grande, and the cast filming on the ground is the one that will carry the premiere.
