PaleyFest 2014 Closing Night: American Horror Story Coven

It was the closing night of the 31st Annual PaleyFest, and the witches were out at Covenwarts for the American Horror Story: Coven panel of cast and creators. This was the first time the Paley Center for Media has ever honored a miniseries. The ultimate TV fan festival took place in Hollywood's Dolby Theatre to a packed house of studious Supremes. The evening kicked off with a Bewitched clip from 1970, followed by the AHS: Coven episode "Burn, Witch. Burn!" (named after the 1962 Horror classic?) The audience cheered on as Dame Lange popped pills, Taissa Farmiga massacred the walking dead with a chainsaw, and Kathy Bates ran a stake through her dead daughter's heart.

Creators Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk were in the house; Brad stating that "you can't have a more female drama than witches." Most of the cast were present, including, Gabourey Sidibe, Evan Peters, Frances Conroy, Sarah Paulson, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, Jamie Brewer, Denis O'Hare, and Angela Bassett. Jessica Lange, Lily Rabe, and Taissa Farmiga have apparently started their own chapter of Coven elsewhere. The PaleyFest mediator pointed out that the only two male characters on the show are both mute, which Ryan and Brad claimed was unintentional, but that it is a show about female empowerment. The American Horror Story stars told stories of New Orleans after hours debauchery, and Sarah Paulson, the new Supreme, had the audience roaring with her slapstick. Gabourey Sidibe and Kathy Bates have a secret spin-off, which Sidibe pitched to the audience: "Queenie & The Head." It's set in Seattle, where the two are roommates and "the head" (Bates) is an online teacher. I'd watch that! Ryan Murphy confessed that Stevie Nicks was one of his "things" growing up, and that the "Seven Wonders" opening was all her idea. No wonder the opening segment felt like a Nicks video.

Lastly, the evening couldn't finish without some news about next season's highly anticipated American Horror Story: Freak Show. Murphy told us it will take place in 1950 Florida, but shot in New Orleans. A PaleyFest exclusive announced on stage new cast member Michael Chiklis (The Shield) will make his return back to FX on Freak Show, playing Kathy Bates' ex-husband, and Evan Peters' father. Murphy also divulged that everybody on stage would be returning, as well as some actors from AHS Season 1 joining the circus. "We love actors. We write roles for actors," said Murphy.

On a side note: the power of the coven seemed to have made some tectonic plates shift.

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