‘American Horror Story’ Season 13 Trailer Brings Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson and the Witches Back

The American Horror Story Season 13 trailer has arrived, giving viewers the fullest look yet at the franchise’s ambitious reunion of characters and actors from across its previous chapters. FX released the full trailer on Thursday, September 10, ahead of the anthology’s return on September 24.

The footage brings Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Emma Roberts and other franchise veterans back into the same season, expanding on the returning cast FX previously revealed. TheWrap’s coverage of the new trailer confirms that Lange appears in several of her best-known roles while the witches associated with Coven face a new threat.

American Horror Story Season 13 trailer turns the anthology into a crossover

The new footage makes clear that Season 13 is not simply bringing familiar performers back as unrelated characters. Several actors are returning to roles viewers already know from earlier installments.

Lange appears as characters including Elsa Mars from Freak Show and Constance Langdon from Murder House. Paulson returns as Cordelia Goode, while Bassett is back as Marie Laveau and Roberts reprises Madison Montgomery. Peters appears as characters including James Patrick March and Kai Anderson.

The trailer also revisits other corners of the anthology. John Carroll Lynch’s Twisty the Clown returns, while Mena Suvari is back as Elizabeth Short. The result gives Season 13 the structure of a franchise-wide event rather than another completely self-contained chapter.

People independently confirmed Lange’s multi-character return, including her appearances as Constance Langdon, Sister Jude, Fiona Goode and Elsa Mars. Her participation is especially notable because she had not appeared on American Horror Story since a guest return in 2018’s Apocalypse.

Watch the American Horror Story Season 13 trailer

FX’s official trailer offers the first extended look at the returning characters and crossover storyline at the center of Season 13.

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The witches face another threat

The trailer places the witches associated with Coven near the center of the new conflict. Cordelia senses danger approaching, while other returning characters hint that witch hunting will become part of the season’s storyline.

That creates another connection between chapters that have already crossed paths. Apocalypse previously revisited characters and mythology from both Murder House and Coven, demonstrating that the anthology’s supposedly separate seasons can exist within a shared continuity.

Season 13 appears prepared to push that concept considerably further. The trailer moves between characters and imagery associated with Murder House, Coven, Freak Show, Hotel, Cult and other previous installments.

TVLine’s report on the September 10 trailer similarly identifies the returning characters as the centerpiece of the preview, including Lange, Paulson and Peters.

John Waters joins the American Horror Story universe

The season is not relying exclusively on returning faces. John Waters appears in the trailer as Mr. Phibes, joining an ensemble that also includes newcomers and newer franchise performers.

The wider cast includes Kathy Bates, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, Leslie Grossman, Joey Pollari, Avantika, Alex Consani, Madelaine Petsch, Paul Anthony Kelly and others.

Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk remain the creators and executive producers behind the series. The production comes from 20th Television.

FX previously described the 13th installment as a celebration of the anthology’s history. The franchise has accumulated more than 100 Emmy nominations since debuting in 2011, according to the network, and has now reached a point where characters separated by years of television can be brought together within the same story.

Season 13 changes the American Horror Story format

The returning characters are not the only unusual element of the season. American Horror Story: 13 consists of 13 half-hour episodes, a shift from the longer episodes traditionally associated with the anthology.

FX plans to premiere the first three episodes on September 24, followed by another multi-episode release the next week and additional episodes through the season finale around Halloween.

The series will air on FX and stream through Hulu in the United States. International availability varies through Disney’s streaming platforms.

The American Horror Story Season 13 trailer provides the clearest indication yet of why the returning cast matters. Rather than relying only on nostalgia, the footage places recognizable characters from different eras of the anthology inside a larger conflict, setting up what may become the franchise’s most extensive crossover to date.