Crank up the "Silver Springs" and reach for the tissues: Jessica Lange says she's "done" after four seasons on American Horror Story.
Lange has been a fixture of Ryan Murphy's FX horror anthology since the beginning: she played a homicidal neighbor in Murder House, a troubled lounge singer turned nun in Asylum, a glamorous witch in Coven, and an amputee Freak Show impresario.
The 65-year-old two-time Oscar winner has proved to be the series' unlikely breakout star, easily outshining — and having at least as much steamy on-screen sex as — her ingenue costars like Emma Roberts and Taissa Farmiga. Her partnership with Murphy has also gone a long way towards revitalizing an already deeply impressive career. Lange won two Emmys, a SAG Award, and a Golden Globe for her work on the show, and the stunning actress became the face of Marc Jacobs Beauty last year.
Outside of Taraji P. Henson's scenery-chewing turn as Cookie on Empire, it's hard to think of any dramatic TV roles for women as juicy as the fierce, gorgeous sociopaths Lange has embodied on AHS. Why should the Bryan Cranstons and Jon Hamms of this world get to have all the fun?
AHS: Hotel, coming in October, will feature Matt Bomer, Cheyenne Jackson, and Lady Gaga, but to paraphrase the Supreme herself…
Molly Fitzpatrick is senior editor of Fusion's Pop & Culture section. Her interests include movies about movies, TV shows about TV shows, and movies about TV shows, but not so much TV shows about movies.