FX has set Thursday, September 24, at 9 p.m. ET, 6 p.m. PT, for the premiere of American Horror Story season 13, giving the long-running franchise a firm launch date and confirming that Sarah Paulson is back in the cast.
The date matters because the season has been hanging on a simple question: when does it start, and who is in it? The answer now includes Paulson along with Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Jessica Lange, Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, John Waters and Leslie Grossman, with John Carroll Lynch, Mena Suvari and Matt Fraser set to return as characters they have played before. Paul Anthony Kelly, Berto Colón and Joey Pollari are also joining the franchise for the first time.
That rollout is landing just as interest builds around the next chapter of the series. American Horror Story will stream on Disney+ internationally, and San Diego Comic-Con promotions are already planned to push the season into the streets of Gaslamp with four specially themed ice cream trucks, photo opportunities with Rubber Man, Twisty the Clown and the Witch, and a secret-location stop tied to the 13th scoop. For fans, that makes the premiere date more than a calendar item; it is the start of the season's public push.
The cast news also comes with one notable absence. Ariana Grande will not appear in AHS13 because of scheduling conflicts, leaving the announced lineup intact but not complete in the way some viewers might have expected. The 13th installment's focus remains under wraps, which means FX is asking the audience to wait for the story even as it starts selling the show around it.
What is clear is the path ahead: American Horror Story season 13 now has a date, a returning face in Sarah Paulson, and a Comic-Con campaign built to keep the mystery alive until the premiere arrives.
