Singer and actress Ariana Grande, 32, has officially joined the cast of the upcoming thirteenth season of American Horror Story, which is scheduled for release on Halloween 2026.
The announcement—made on October 31 through a stylized teaser video—confirmed Grande’s participation alongside returning series regulars Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, Leslie Grossman, and Jessica Lange. The reveal, accompanied by Vera Lynn’s I’ll Be Seeing You before transitioning into chilling visuals, concluded with Roberts’ iconic line: “Surprise, bitch. I bet you thought you’d seen the last of me.”
The casting sparked an immediate social media frenzy, with fans expressing excitement over both Lange’s return and Grande’s addition to the ensemble. Online reactions ranged from enthusiastic disbelief—“Ariana Grande in AHS, this is not a drill!”—to humorous astonishment, with several users asking, “Ariana, what are you doing here?”
Grande’s collaboration with American Horror Story creator Ryan Murphy marks a reunion between the two, following her appearance as Chanel #2 in Scream Queens (2015), another Murphy co-creation. Murphy previously described Grande as an “avid fan” of AHS, noting in a past interview that her passion for the series preceded their professional partnership.
Grande’s casting comes amid a major year in her acting career, as she reprises her role as Glinda the Good Witch in Wicked: For Good, the sequel to the 2024 blockbuster Wicked, which grossed approximately $747.2 million on a $150 million budget and earned 10 Academy Award nominations, winning two.#newsafro_
