Season 10 of American Horror Story has been pushed back from its initial 2020 release to 2021, but when can fans expect the upcoming season?
Ryan Murphy has seen a staggering amount of success with his long-running horror anthology show. Ever since season 1 released on FX in 2011, American Horror Story has been a staple of the network’s fall line-up. American Horror Story traditionally releases in September, runs through October, and is a perfect accompaniment to the Halloween season. Often, Murphy queues up a special Halloween episode of each season to run right around the holiday. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, things have had to change for season 10. A landmark season for the show, American Horror Story shows no signs of slowing down, with FX renewing the show through season 13 and even giving the green light to a spin-off series, American Horror Stories, which is set to launch on Hulu.
With the announcement that filming will resume in October 2020, American Horror Story season 10 shouldn’t be too long of a wait. However, given its roots are so ingrained in Halloween and the fall season, could it be another full year before the show returns? Due to the pandemic, lots of shows have had to shift release dates, schedules, and times—movies have been similarly affected—so it’s very possible that the usual release date of September or October could be out the window entirely. Since fans have already been waiting for season 10, and production was initially meant to begin filming during the last week of March 2020, there’s a chance American Horror Story could be back sooner than expected. Here are our predictions for when season 10 of American Horror Story could release.
Ryan Murphy has stated that the theme for season 10, which as of this writing remains unknown, was “weather dependent“. Filming was set to take place in New England, and many have speculated that there’s possibly an aquatic horror theme given the numerous clues released by the show’s creator, including a picture that’s literally a beach. Since production had to be delayed, it’s possible that he’s since had to make adjustments and changes to season 10’s theme. While the spring and fall can have similar weather and climate, depending on the location, it doesn’t seem like the overall filming window is too long—if filming does, in fact, begin in October 2020 without additional delay, season 10 will likely be ready by spring.
Without delays to production, presumably American Horror Story season 10 would have launched on FX in fall of 2020, as usual. In the past, principal photography for the show traditionally begins in July, so the “weather dependent” shots Murphy and crew were searching for already warranted them getting an early start. Given that the show premieres in the fall, this is a fast filming schedule. If American Horror Story takes two months to film, season 10 could be ready by December 2020 or January 2021, if there are additional delays or shots needed. Depending on how much of the season’s photography depends on outdoor scenes, it’s likely that production will go quickly before winter hits the Northeast—the locations announced for season 10 were in Massachusetts, which is known for dramatic winter weather.
Even if season 10 of American Horror Story is ready by winter 2021, it’s not a guarantee that it’ll arrive early. However, if the beach theme is correct, maybe Murphy will consider releasing it early, in July or August of 2021 instead of September. Releasing a TV show in the summer months can be a gamble, but streaming services have released some of their bigger titles, such as 13 Reasons Why and The Umbrella Academy in the summer months. Beyond that, it’s possible that American Horror Stories could be courting a fall 2021 release date since it’s a new show, and American Horror Story is already a proven success.
