Sarah Paulson at FX’s “American Horror Story” 100th Episode Celebration (Photo by Rachel Luna/FilmMagic)
Sarah Paulson has opened up about the American Horror Story season that just didn’t do it for her.
Paulson has starred in almost every season of the horror anthology series, but has admitted that one season left her feeling “trapped”.
Like many fans, Paulson wasn’t convinced by Roanake, the sixth season of American Horror Story.
In a conversation with The Hollywood Reporter’s Awards Chatter podcast, she opened up about her regret at not asking creator Ryan Murphy to be excluded from the season.
“I just [didn’t] care about this season at all,” Paulson stated. “I know people will get mad at me for saying it, but for me, this was post having played Marcia [Clark in The People vs OJ Simpson: American Crime Story] and it was what I went to do right after finishing Marcia.”
Roanake was a high-concept season: opening as a faux true crime documentary complete with dramatic reconstructions, before throwing the “actors” into the drama with the characters they were playing. Paulson played a British actor, and also reprised her role of journalist Lana Winters from Asylum.
“I was so underwhelmed by the whole experience because I felt like I had entered into a new place inside of myself in terms of what I thought possible, in terms of what I might be willing to see if I can do,” Paulson continued.
“I felt really kind of trapped by my responsibility and my contractual obligation to do American Horror Story. As much as it’s my home and I’ve loved it always, it was the first time I felt like I wish I could have gone to Ryan and said please let me sit this one out. You know, let me out.”
Nonetheless, Paulson returned for the subsequent season, Cult, which dealt with the fall-out of Donald Trump’s election. She said she “wanted to be there because of what we all went through as a country. I liked the idea that it was mirroring what we were experiencing. Enough time had gone by.”
After finally sitting a season out, she returned this year for Double Feature, which won the series some of its best reviews in years.