American Horror Storyhas almost been running for a decade and a half. Over its run so far, the show has been host to countless celebrity cameos, some of which just appeared in a single scene or episodes, others had a mini-arc within the season. Although they might not be a main character in the grand scheme of things, it is still nice when a celebrity makes a cameo in the show, just for the sake of being recognizable and breaking up thedark and serious themes ofAmerican Horror Story.
Some celebrities who have had a cameo on the show have enjoyed their time as part of theAmerican Horror Storyuniverseso much that they have returned in future seasons in a starring role. Despite there being countless celebrity cameos in the show, ranging fromLady Gaga as Scathachto Leslie Jordan, there are a handful that have had a greater impact, or a more iconic scene that stand out above the rest.
10Adam Levine
“Asylum”
Despite appearing in five episodes of the show’s second season, Adam Levine only appeared in a couple of minutes per episode.His role is very easily forgotten as it is fragmented away from the main narrative of the overall season, but he still played an important role when looking at the present-day events of the season. During his short stint on the show, Levine got the fullAmerican Horror Storyexperience as he got to scream, run away from a monster, and havean epic on-screen death inAmerican Horror Story.
Famous for being a member of music group,Maroon 5, Levine plays Leo Morrison, a man on his honeymoon with his wife. The couple enjoy sightseeing and traveling to places that have a dark history, so they decide to visit the Briarcliff Mannor Asylum. Whilst there, they encounter the serial killer known as “Bloody Face”. Needless to say, the couple do not make it out alive. This was Adam Levine’s first-time guest starring on a television series, and he did an amazing job, even given his limited screen time.
9Patti LuPone
“Coven”
Broadway star Patti LuPone made her first appearance onAmerican Horror Storyin the show’s third season. She played the role of Joan Ramsey, Luke’s over-protective, strongly religious mother who lives next door to the Coven.LuPone’s role in “Coven” is easily forgotten due to the strong female presence of the whole season, and all the other storylines going on at the same time. Luke and his mother were just introduced as part of Nan’s storyline, but even Nan herself didn’t have as much screen time as the other witches on the show.
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Despite having a murderous twist to her story, Joan Ramsey didn’t have that much screen time as she only appeared in four episodes. However, she did get to kill her own son, as well as getting her own epic death scene when Nan forces her to drink bleach. Patti LuPone did return to the show’s eleventh season as bathhouse singer, Kathy Pizazz, where she played a much bigger role in the series, becoming a series regular.
8Neil Patrick Harris
“Freak Show”
Neil Patrick Harris appeared in two episodes of the show’s fourth season. He played Chester Creb, a ventriloquist who wants to join Elsa’s Cabinet of Curiosities. Despite only appearing in two episodes, Harris had some really interesting storylines, including a romantic scandal with his wife and her lover, his delusions where he believes his ventriloquist dummy is real and becoming the murderer of Maggie Esmerelda (Emma Roberts).
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Aside from Dandy, Chester Creb is one of the most troubled characters in “Freak Show.” He does some truly reprehensible things such as plotting the murder or Bette and Dot, and sawing Maggie in half, buthe doesn’t realize the bad things he is doing until it’s too late. Chester had delusions that he would flash in and out of, and during these delusions he wouldn’t be in control of his actions.
7Lena Dunham
“Cult”
Lena Dunham appeared in one episode of theAmerican Horror Story’s seventh season. Despite her one appearance on the show, she played a huge part in the episode. She played a fictionalized version of feminist activist, Valerie Solanas in an episode called “Valerie Solanas Died For Your Sins: Scumbag”. In the episode, she got to be a cult leader, shoot Andy Warhol and act as though she was living in madness. Despite very limited screen time, it’s evident that Dunham got the chance to play a greatly iconic role on the show.
The majority of the episode took place in the past, allowing the episode to be all about Valerie Solanas, meaning that even though she only appeared in the one episode, Lena Dunham was the focal point of the episode.Her performance was immaculate, and it was clear that she put everything into the role. The character was somewhat frightening yet entertaining to watch. However, the fact that it was just a single episode means that it is easy to forget that Dunham appeared in the show at all.
6Naomi Campbell
“Hotel”
Fashion icon, Naomi Campbell appeared in the fifth season ofAmerican Horror Storyas Claudia Bankson, an editor for Vogue magazine. She arrives at the Hotel Cortez to write a piece on Will Drake’s fashion show. However, Bankson is soon entranced by the hotel and decides to stay a little longer than she intended, leading to her untimely death.Campbell’s role is easily forgotten as she just appeared in two episodes, and she didn’t play a major role in either of the two episodes. She was there more for the sake of recognizing her.
Luckily, Naomi Campbell was given the fillAmerican Horror Storyexperience as she was given the epic death scene of being stabbed multiple times. Once she died, she became a ghost having to reside in the Hotel Cortez for the rest of eternity. Not only was she killed off, butshe got to become a ghost and haunt people’s fashion choices. Campbell’s appearance on the show was extremely iconic, yet she didn’t play an important role in the overall plot of the season.
5Lady Gaga
“Roanoke”
The famous pop singer’s first acting job was as The Countess on the fifth season ofAmerican Horror Storyfrom which she won a Golden Globe. However, it is commonly forgotten that Gaga returned briefly in a much smaller role to show’s sixth season. She played Scathach, the first supreme of the coven, living as part of the Roanoke colony. In the show she was mainly shown as a ghost, haunting the grounds and the people who trespassed.
Lady Gaga only appeared as Scathach for three episodes, playing a minimal part of the plot in each appearance. Despite her limited screentime, as Scathach, Lady Gaga was able to partake in sex scenes, and some wicked sacrifices. The character was completely different to the lavished role of Elizabeth she played in “Hotel”, so it was interesting to see Lady Gaga in a different role that she was used to, even if the role is easily forgotten.
4Sandra Bernhard
“Apocalypse”
The comedy actress first appeared inAmerican Horror Story’seighth season as Hannah, a high priestess for the Church of Satan. She only appeared in one scene where she is delivering a sermon and finding someone to carry out an evil sacrifice. Despite the wickedness of the role, Bernhard’s comedic timings still shine through, allowing a slight lighter tone for such a dark episode. Not much about her character is known at all apart from the fact that she worships Satan and is trying to push the message onto others.Sandra Bernhard later returned toAmerican Horror Story’s eleventh season as a main character in the role of Fran where she appeared in six episodes.
3Darren Criss
Darren Criss was in two episodes ofAmerican Horror Story’s fifth season. He played Justin, an uptight and difficult hipster guest at the Hotel Cortez. Darren Criss is well known for collaborating with Ryan Murphy on other projects such asGlee, HollywoodandAmerican Crime Story, so it seemed about time for him to finally make an appearance onAmerican Horror Story.
He was stabbed in the back and drained of his blood by Iris (Kathy Bates)
Darren Criss only appeared in a few scenes, playing a very minor role in the season, however, he did have a pretty cool death scene. He was stabbed in the back and drained of his blood by Iris (Kathy Bates) as revenge for being such a difficult hotel guest. Althoughit would have been nice to see Darren Criss a bit more in theAmerican Horror Storyuniverse, it was nice to see him in some capacity. So even if he doesn’t reappear in the series at some point down the line, at least he had this cameo appearance.
2Joan Collins
Joan Collins played two separate characters inAmerican Horror Story’s eighth season, yet she still gets overlooked. “Apocalypse” featured the return of the witches from “Coven”, Stevie Nicks and a lot of focus on Satanism and the Antichrist, so it’s no surprise that her appearances are commonly. Both of her roles are as unique and fabulous as each other. In the first two episodes of the season, she starred as Evie Gallant, an older woman who survived the nuclear apocalypse in a bunker.
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In the second half of the season, she appeared as Bubbles McGee for two episodes, she was a witch with the ability to read minds who left the coven to be a movie star.Joan Colins was granted with the privilege of being killed off not once, but twice. The first time she was paying Evie and was stabbed to death, the second time she was playing Bubbles and was killed by magic. Even if her roles are forgotten and overlooked, it doesn’t make them any less iconic.
1Chaz Bono
Chaz Bono, the son of Sonny and Cher appeared in two seasons ofAmerican Horror Story.He first appeared in “Roanoke” in a very minor role as Brian Wells, the re-enactment actor of Lot Polk. He later appeared in “Cult” in a much bigger role as Gary Longstreet where he appeared in the majority of the season. Despite appearing in five out of ten episodes of “Roanoke”, his role was very small, commonly appearing in the background of scenes or as part of an ensemble, so his appearance is commonly forgotten about.
Even though he wasn’t in much of the season, he still had some great storylines to play out.
His character in “Roanoke” tried to purchase the Roanoke house, but his bid was rejected. He was later revealed to be an evil cannibal after revenge. His character also got to officiate the wedding between Rory (Evan Peters) and Audrey (Sarah Paulson). Even though he wasn’t in much of the season, he still had some great storylines to play out, and he later returned toAmerican Horror Storyin a much bigger role.
American Horror Story
Cast
American Horror Story is a Horror Anthology series created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk. The franchise has seen stars like Connie Britton, Jessica Lange, Denis O’Hare, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, and Dylan McDermott. Each season follows a new premise and spans an array of horror genres like witches, ghosts, serial killers, and more.
