Ryan Murphy is wrapping up his summer of scares with a winter in Provincetown, Mass., where we’ll finally meet American Horror Story: Double Feature‘s colorful cast of characters.
Wednesday (FX, 10/9c) marks the long-awaited, two-part premiere of the franchise’s 10th season, which itself is divided into two separate mini seasons: “Red Tide,” a story by the sea, and “Death Valley,” a story by the sand. That first one is what we’re focusing on here.
In addition to welcoming back longtime AHS favorites like Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters and Lily Rabe, this chilling new season — whatever it’s really about — also welcomes several newcomers into the AHS family, including none other than Macaulay Culkin. (He has to do the Home Alone scream face at least once, right?)
Read on for a breakdown of the new characters (with very familiar faces) joining your DVR rotation this Wednesday, then drop a comment with your thoughts below. How high are your expectations for “Red Tide”?
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FINN WITTROCK
Image Credit: FX screenshot Wittrock, who returned for just a single episode of AHS: 1984, is back full time as Harry, a struggling writer who moves his pregnant wife and young daughter to the isolated beach town of Provincetown, Mass., for the winter. A nasty case of writer’s block will soon become the least of his worries.
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LILY RABE
Image Credit: FX screenshot Last seen playing Wittrock’s late grandmother in AHS: 1984, Rabe now finds herself playing his pregnant wife Doris. Despite being a city girl by nature, Doris is trying to look on the bright side of her new life in Provincetown — even though things don’t tend to turn out well for expectant mothers in this franchise.
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RYAN KIERA ARMSTRONG
Image Credit: FX screenshot This young actress is making her Horror Story debut as Harry and Doris’ daughter Alma, a musical prodigy with a penchant for freaking out her parents by spouting unsettling platitudes like “It takes pain to make beautiful things.” She’s living proof that, when it comes to being a tortured artist, age is nothing but a number.
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FRANCES CONROY
Image Credit: FX screenshot The living embodiment of a cautionary tale, Conroy’s flamboyant Belle appears to traffic in other people’s victories — but at what cost? “There’s nothing more addictive than success,” she tells Harry. “You’ve tasted it. Now, you’re never going to be able to live without it.” The fact that she later pulls a gun on Harry in the trailer all but confirms her shady nature.
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EVAN PETERS
Image Credit: FX screenshot Peters’ latest provocative character, the oh-so-smarmy Austin, talks of Provincetown’s innate ability to provide inspiration to those who seek it. But given Austin’s constant proximity to Belle, we have to wonder what he’s really seeking.
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LESLIE GROSSMAN
Image Credit: FX screenshot This beloved Horror Story scene stealer is back in yet another over-the-top role, though Grossman’s latest character — the occasionally bespectacled Ursula — is considerably less glamorous than those she’s played in seasons past. Sensing that “something weird” is afoot in Provincetown, Ursula is determined to get to the bottom of the situation by any means necessary.
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MACAULAY CULKIN
Image Credit: FX screenshot Culkin is the latest Hollywood icon to join the Horror Story family, making his debut as an apparent ne’er-do-well named Mickey. The character appears to be breaking into someone’s house in the “Red Tide” trailer, making us wonder if the actor is finally going full circle from his Home Alone days. Who’s the wet bandit, now?!
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ANGELICA ROSS
Image Credit: FX screenshot You know those little black pills we’ve been seeing in Double Feature promos? Those would fall under Ross’ character’s jurisdiction, though it’s anyone’s guess what the “chemist” is really up to.
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SARAH PAULSON
Image Credit: FX screenshot We’ve seen her transform into some pretty outrageous characters over the years, but Paulson is more unrecognizable than ever as Double Feature‘s “TB Karen,” a mysterious local whose favorite pastimes include running, screaming and bleeding from her face. In other words, she’ll fit right in!
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DENIS O'HARE
Image Credit: FX screenshot Finally back in the AHS fold for the first time since (gasp!) Roanoke, O’Hare is now playing a seemingly upstanding Provincetown resident named Holden. Of course, there’s nothing upstanding about the grim discovery Holden makes on the beach in the Double Feature trailer. Severed limbs, anyone?
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BILLIE LOURD
Image Credit: FX screenshot We still know very little about Lourd’s character, reportedly named Lark, but the trailer offers a glimpse of her performing oral surgery on Harry, bringing to mind that sharp-toothed mouth used in so much of the season’s promotional material. And is there anything more terrifying than a dentist?
