PaleyFest LA wrapped its week of TV panels with FX’s “American Horror Story: Roanoke.”
Executive producer Brad Falchuk revisited his original interest in the concept of “Roanoke” during a Q&A on Sunday at Hollywood’s Dolby Theatre.
“Even before the show, we were always fascinated by it. It’s one of the few American mysteries so it was always in the back of our head. It was nice to have something that had just a kernel of truth in it and we could fill in whatever we want,” said Falchuk.
“Every season we’ve always tried to do something different. We really wanted to be as scary as possible. I wanted to beat the hell out of the cast in a different way,” he added.
For Cheyenne Jackson, who played reality producer Sidney Aaron James, the inspiration for the ruthless character came from an unlikely source.
“I love the show ‘Unreal,’ she’s so simple-minded that she’ll do anything to get the shot, and when the part was pitched to me, it was kind of the same idea,” he said.
Sarah Paulson, who played three characters during “Roanoke,” including reprising “Asylum’s” Lana Winters, compared this season to her previous ones on show.
“Usually Ryan Murphy comes out and gives a little niblet, but this was completely blackout,” she said.
When asked what other “American Horror Story” role she’d like to possibly revisit, Paulson chose her “Coven” character Cordelia Foxx.
“Probably Cordelia. We only got to see her just getting her powers,” Paulson said. “I just would like to know if the power might have been something that kind of changed her.”
“Maybe we’ll get to see that,” she added.
Denis O’Hare, meanwhile, said he would revisit either Larry Harvey from “Murder House” or Spalding from “Asylum,” while Kathy Bates would prefer to play a new character instead.
Kathy Bates repeatedly referred to Paulson as “the people’s princess” during the panel, possibly hinting that the Emmy winner may have been cast as Princess Diana on Season 2 of Ryan Murphy’s “Feud.” Bates used the moniker twice as the crowd cheered on and Paulson blushed. After the applause subsided, someone in the crowd yelled to Bates, “And you’re the Queen!” Eventgoers then roared in applause again.
Aside from “American Horror Story,” Paulson has worked on Murphy’s “American Crime Story” series so it won’t be a surprise if she also collaborates with him on “Feud: Charles and Diana” — about the unhappy union of Prince Charles and Princess Diana.
In addition to her friendly banter with Bates, Paulson also joked around with costar Cuba Gooding Jr. Gooding lifted the hem of Paulson’s dress, exposing a slit in the front, as she greeted Bates at the beginning of the Q&A. Paulson shrieked and laughed off the situation, but social media users have been less forgiving, with the situation sparking outrage online.
“Um… so is @cubagoodingjr allowed to get away with lifting @MsSarahPaulson skirt at @paleycenter? Total disrespect to a woman,” one person tweeted.
https://twitter.com/piratepenzan/status/846202072064233472
“@cubagoodingjr hi, dude. did you apologize to Sarah? you should if you didn’t bc what you did was Gross and Disrespectful,” another wrote.
@cubagoodingjr hi, dude. did you apologize to Sarah? you should if you didn't bc what you did was Gross and Disrespectful
— -`spen wuvs len´- (@bettysgrdn) March 27, 2017
“How would @cubagoodingjr react if a man walked up to his daughter, Piper and lifted her dress up behind her back? #itsneverok,” another said.
https://twitter.com/SupremelyOne/status/846288725416005632
“FYI the reason @MsSarahPaulson is smiling is bc @MsKathyBates, then screams out of shock at the disrespectful actions of @cubagoodingjr,” another user tweeted.
FYI the reason @MsSarahPaulson is smiling is bc @MsKathyBates, then screams out of shock at the disrespectful actions of @cubagoodingjr
— bean ⚰️ (@MistyyyGoode) March 27, 2017
Photos and video captured the incident.
https://twitter.com/90sIover/status/846200177333547008
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| David Buchan/Variety/REX/Shutterstock |
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| David Buchan/Variety/REX/Shutterstock |