Now that it’s finally October, spooky season is finally in full swing. And nothing screams scary like a new season of American Horror Story. With Season 8 finally out, Ryan Murphy is bringing back many beloved characters in this thrilling crossover between the Murder House and Coven seasons. However, we are also introduced to a new foe, the ever demonic Michael Langdon, who seems to have plans to create a new and darker age. He can definitely be considered one of the most complex villains that has been introduced to the show. What makes AHS villains so intriguing to watch is that they are able to see the difference between good and bad, yet still choose to turn to the darkness. In honor of the new season and the introduction of a new villain, keep reading to explore the top 5 best villains of American Horror Story, ranked.
#5: John Lowe
Out of all the colorful guests at the Cortez in the Hotel season, John Lowe definitely is a character that brings an unexpected twist to the story, despite his ordinary appearance. He comes to the hotel with his life in pieces, being the father to a missing son and having his marriage crumble with him falling back into bad drinking habits. Nothing seems to be going right for him as he buries himself in his work to find a serial killer.
Now here’s the twist…
John soon discovers that he is actually the serial killer he was hunting. We find out that all along, the hotel’s original owner, James March, had been manipulating him and training him to become his murderous successor (him being dead for a while and all).
#4: Dandy Mott
Dandy Mott is introduced as a extremely sadistic and spoiled man-child in Freak Show. Whatever he wants, he gets-no questions asked. Throughout his entire time on screen, Dandy is encouraged by his mother to do whatever he pleases. In his downward spiral, Dandy makes it his mission to purge the world of all unworthy souls and bathes in their blood after killing them. In some way, it makes him feel like he is something “above man”. During the season, it is revealed that his murderous tendencies started during childhood. This comes to a ghastly finale, however, when he goes on a murderous rampage and kills his “colleagues” at the circus, even though he had considered himself to be one of them.
#3: Arthur Arden
Arthur Arden (later revealed to be Hans Gruber) is someone who exhibits worse behavior than that of a regular serial killer. The resident physician at Briarcliff and a former Nazi, he is often seem experimenting on his patients, mutilating them beyond belief and sending them loose on the asylum grounds. His main goal in life was to create this perfect kind of human, driving to become a sadistic verison of Dr. Frankenstein.
#2: Oliver Thredson/Bloody Face
Oliver Thredson is one of the other main villains that bring much torture during Asylum. Introduced as a sane and relatable visiting psychiatrist who may be the key to Lana Winter’s escape, Thredson’s true identity serves as a major plot twist to the audience. It is revealed that he is actually the infamous serial killer Bloody Face, who has been on a murderous rampage since the beginning of the season. When he is able to free Lana and bring her back to his house, it is shown that he has furniture made completely out of human skin and a mask made out of human skin, teeth, and hair. It is a vile sight for a character that once seemed to offer so much hope.
#1: James March
Out of any villain on the show, March definitely has the highest body count. He was the original owner of the Hotel Cortez, a building he specifically had built for his murderous activities. The hotel itself was designed as a torture chamber, something in which March took much pride in. During his life, he was a mass-murder who found great pleasure in the killing of his victims. Even after being found by the police, March committed suicide in hopes that his ghost could remain in the hotel and continue to wreak havoc on its guests. Even in death, he was able to to fulfill his everlasting bloodlust, taking in John Lowe as his murderous apprentice.