| American Horror Story: Freak Show | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster and home media cover art | |
| Showrunner | Ryan Murphy |
| Starring | |
| No. of episodes | 13 |
| Release | |
| Original network | FX |
| Original release | October 8, 2014 – January 21, 2015 |
| Season chronology | |
The fourth season of the American horror anthology television series American Horror Story, subtitled Freak Show, is set in 1952 Jupiter, Florida, telling the story of one of the last remaining freak shows in the United States and their struggle for survival. The ensemble cast includes Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Michael Chiklis, Frances Conroy, Emma Roberts, Denis O'Hare, Finn Wittrock, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, and Jessica Lange, with all returning from previous seasons, except newcomers Chiklis and Wittrock. The season marks the first not to be strictly anthological, with Lily Rabe, Naomi Grossman, and James Cromwell reprising their roles from the series' second cycle, Asylum.
Created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk for the cable network FX, the series is produced by 20th Century Fox Television. Freak Show was broadcast between October 8, 2014, to January 21, 2015, consisting of 13 episodes. Like its predecessors, the season was met with positive reviews and consistently strong ratings. The premiere episode attracted a series high of 6.13 million viewers, making it the most viewed episode of the series. It ultimately became FX's most-watched program ever, surpassing its previous installment, Coven.[1] The season garnered a total of twenty Emmy Award nominations, the most for any season of American Horror Story to date, including nominations for Outstanding Limited Series, and six acting nominations for Lange, O'Hare, Wittrock, Paulson, Bassett, and Bates. In addition, Paulson won for Best Supporting Actress in a Movie or Limited Series at the 5th Critics' Choice Television Awards.
- ^ Rick Kissell (June 15, 2015). "'American Horror Story: Freak Show' Sets FX Ratings Record". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2015.