'American Horror Story' Scoop: Season 2's Setting Revealed and More

Since we learned that Season 2 of FX's supremely scary drama "American Horror Story" would start fresh with new characters in a new setting, we've been dying (just like the Harmons) to know the gory details. The show's creative team has been tight-lipped about Season 2 so far -- but now a major piece of the puzzle has fallen into place.

At a screening and panel discussion for Emmy voters last night, "AHS" creator Ryan Murphy finally revealed the setting for Season 2: "It is set on the East Coast at an institution for the criminally insane that is run by Jessica [Lange's character]," he said. Hmmm, sounds like a demented "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" with Lange as Nurse Ratched… we're getting creeped out already.

But don't expect Lange to be chewing scenery as her Season 1 character, Constance; Murphy says all the actors returning from Season 1 -- Lange, Evan Peters (Tate), and Zachary Quinto (Chad) among them -- will be "playing the polar opposite of what they were in Season 1." He also teased that Season 2 will be "set in a completely different time period" than last season, with no connection at all to what happened in Season 1.

Murphy also confirmed that Maroon 5 rocker/"The Voice" coach Adam Levine will make his TV acting debut as a Season 2 cast member. He wouldn't reveal much about Levine's role, other than that he will be playing a "sexy guy" (duh, look at him) and that he may be paired up with just-cast French actress Lizzie Brochere as a key Season 2 couple known simply as "The Lovers." Oooh la la, indeed.


[Related: 'American Horror Story': Last Season's Craziest Moments]


Season 2 of "American Horror Story" begins shooting in July, for a probable fall run. Here are some other tidbits dropped by the show's cast and creators last night:

  • Stars Connie Britton (Vivien) and Dylan McDermott (Ben) didn't mind getting killed off in Season 1; in fact, they knew they were going to die before they even signed on to do the show. Coming off a five-season run of "Friday Night Lights," Britton said she "couldn't wait to find out how I was gonna bite it." And McDermott says learning his character wouldn't survive the season was "a relief, honestly" since "signing up for five or six seasons and playing the same character… it gets old." Guess 147 episodes of "The Practice" didn't sit well with the guy.

  • Though she's an Oscar-winning film actress, Lange (who's already scored a Golden Globe and a SAG Award for her role as Constance) seems to enjoy working in television. "It forced me to work in a way I'd never worked before, which was very much in the moment. You had no time to prepare; you had no idea where the character was going. It forced me to be bold… and throw caution to the wind and use [my] imagination. If it works, it works, and if it fails, it will fail on a large scale." Yep, that pretty much sums up the two prevailing opinions about "AHS" right there.

  • Don't look for those crazy New Directions kids to pop up in "American Horror Story" anytime soon. Even though Murphy and co-creator Brad Falchuk also produce "Glee," they don't see the two very different series ever crossing paths. When asked if there's a "Glee"/"AHS" crossover in the works, they both flatly said, "Never." Sorry, Rachel and Finn; no gruesome deaths for you.