American Horror Story: Roanoke has been all about subverting and extinguishing expectations since its basic conception, and while the subject matter is no longer a secret, there are still many mysteries that need explanations. Some of those will almost assuredly come in the next episode, which is set to feature a groundbreaking twist that co-creator Ryan Murphy has been fiendishly rubbing his hands together over for a while now. To whet our collective appetites for destruction, Murphy has unveiled a few details about the shocking turns.
Something happens where half the cast is revealed to be doing something completely different than you've seen in the first five [episodes]. You realize what you've been watching with some of the characters is not [who] they are. [The actors] had to do a mad scramble to find new voices and accents. It is a big turn. It's the biggest plot twist we've ever done with the show. And there's a startling announcement in Act 3 that resets the season up until Episode 10.
Ryan Murphy's words confirm what many of us have been assuming: the doubled-up narrative of American Horror Story: Roanoke's docuseries formatting hasn't given audiences the most honest version of the deadly events in question. The past couple of episodes have hinted at the "real" world beyond the talking head figures - Andre Holland, Lily Rabe, etc. - and "Chapter 5" seemingly ended with the conclusion of the Millers' "Roanoke Nightmare," which is the perfect time to bring out the big guns as far as story-flipping twists are concerned.
We don't know which characters will get to make the switcheroos, but one would have to assume it's those that are being interviewed, right? I'm not sure how the show could pull back the metaphorical curtain on Kathy Bates' Butcher or Denis O'Hare's Elias Cunningham as we've seen them on the show, so I'd put all my money on the "real" Matt and Shelby Miller (and the others) having a very different thrust in the overarching story moving forward. Sarah Paulson did say that this role was her strangest one yet, so I guess I should keep a little money to wager on her and Cuba Gooding Jr.'s characters being the source of the twist.
However, the teaser for "Chapter 6" is pretty on-the-nose with its statements about cameras, bringing me back around to my gut instincts. Check it out below.
Ryan Murphy went on to talk in the conference call (via TVLine) about other things we can expect from the remainder of the season, including unspecified roles from Finn Wittrock and the finally returning Taissa Farmiga. He shared a couple of teasers about next year's Season 7 as well. But I won't be able to think about anything else until I see what the hell Roanoke's big shocker is all about.
Get your mind-containing helmets on, people, as American Horror Story: Roanoke airs Wednesday nights on FX at 10:00 p.m. To see what else is coming your way on the small screen, check out our fall TV schedule.
