This article discusses extreme violence.
American Horror Storyhas never been afraid of pushing boundaries, and each season has featured some of the most shocking and disgusting moments on television. The latest season, titledAmerican Horror Story: Delicate,alone contains the series' signature blend of horror and drama that represents themes of modern fears in gross ways that include but are not limited to mutilation, vomiting, and bloody murder.All seasons ofAmerican Horror Storyhave done a great job of creating moments full of shocking visuals that create tension and make some scenes even more disturbing.
The anthology showincludes problematic character relations that can reveal horrifying lengths individuals will go to for specific situations, body horrors that can be almost too unreal when the series wants to take a more supernatural turn, and realistic gore that focuses on atmosphere and storytelling to conjure up tension. The results are unforgettable scenes that not only embodyAmerican Horror Story’saesthetic but the essence of horror overall.
10Violet Finds Her Body
Season 1, Episode 10, “Smoldering Children”
Violet Harmon (Taissa Farmiga), the embodiment of teenage angst, tries to deal with her crumbling household while also dealing with her new, strange romance with Tate Langdon (Evan Peters), one of the resident ghosts of her new home. At one point, it all becomes too much for her, with her discovering more about who Tate was in his former life. This is her breaking point, and she tries to take her own, which leads to Tate seemingly saving her before it’s too late.
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This shocking and tragic situation comes from the reality that Violet succeeded in taking her life and sees the proof for herself. She was taken to the ghastly sight of her now decaying body in the house’s crawlspace. The reveal is a haunting and heartbreaking one, asViolet is overwhelmed by the horrid sight of her corpse’s open mouth full of flies while in a rigor mortis position. It’s all the disgusting proof she needs to learn she’s now another permanent resident of the titular Murder House.
9Shelley At The Playground
Season 2, Episode 5, “I Am Anne Frank Part 2”
After such terrible torture,Shelley (Chloë Sevigny)is abandoned in the woods near Briarcliff Manor. She is left clinging to life with her legs amputated and her face covered in boils, burns, and scars.Shelley is hardly recognizable as she musters enough energy to crawl to a nearby playground, the innocent setting a twisted juxtaposition that amplifies the horrors she endured.
A monstrous figure now, Shelley’s unsettling presence comes from how her legs' absence leaves her moving so unnaturally on the ground and how her face is unrecognizable due to the scars and boils she’s received. Her disfigurement is a representation of the torment endured at Briarcliff Manor. Seeing someone who’s been through so much desperately fighting to survive could be uplifting, but in this case, it’s disturbing as it is heartbreaking how Shelley is punished simply for having human desires.
8RJ’s Death
Season 7, Episode 5, “Holes”
In the episode “Holes” fromAmerican Horror Story: Cult,RJ’s (James Morosini) death is a disturbing scene that can linger in anyone’s mind. Bound to a chair, he becomes the next target for Kai’s (Evan Peters) cult, a group that deemed him a weak link and is now determined to exert their power through brutal means by turning a nail gun into a weapon of torture. Although not highly graphic,this scene fromAmerican Horror Story: Cultcaptures the series' ability to explore the darkest corners of humanity in a realistic setting.
It’s a slow, painful death as the nail gun used to end RJ’s life by each cult member is fired, and there is a focus on his face, so his raw fear and despair make the act personal. Each shot to RJ’s head is done with an organized form of cruelty since almost everyone does it with little to no remorse and performs the action like an assigned task. There’s no supernatural violence, just a slow, painful death that leaves a profound sense of unease.
7The Rubber Man’s Identity
Season 1, Episode 1, “Pilot”
In the very firstepisode ofAmerican Horror Story,the Harmon family (Dylan McDermot, Connie Britton, and Taissa Farmiga) set off to Los Angeles to start a new life in their new home, unaware that the house is full of various ghosts willing to interact with each of them in multiple ways. A standout figure is the Rubber Man, whose eerie appearance and actions make him a profoundly unsettling character.
Due to his actions, the enigmatic character represents violation and manipulation. He takes advantage of the Harmon matriarch (Britton) when she mistakes him for her husband, making for a sick scene to watch as she’s fooled by this haunting figure in a skin-tight, black latex suit. If this deception wasn’t bad enough, it’s later revealed that the Rubber Man is none other than Tate Langdon (Evan Peters).
It was already clear that Tate could do things that could be loathsome. However, this twist was still disgusting to learn becausehe had since established a romantic relationship with Violet(Farmiga), the daughter of the woman he planted his ghostly seed in.
6Maggie’s Death
Season 4, Episode 12, “Show Stoppers”
InAmerican Horror Story: Freak Show,an unsuspecting Maggie (Emma Roberts) volunteers to be part of magician Chester’s (Neil Patrick Harris) act, which includes her being part of the classic sawed-in-half illusion. Little does Maggie know, Chester’s mentally disturbed enough to make the trick more natural than expected. Chester is described as a troubled soul who lets his delusions take over even while he performs his magic act, which will be Maggie’s downfall.
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What should’ve been a rehearsal for a thrilling performance instead becomes nightmarish when Chester’s hallucinations overwhelm him enough to go into a blind rage as he doesn’t allow Maggie to position herself correctly, cuffs her ankles, and violently sees her in half. The unveiling of Maggie’s intestines spilling onto the stage is a gross and disturbing scene that brings Chester back to reality momentarily to see what he’d done and realize the fine line between magic and monstrosity he jumped around.
5Cordelia’s Eyes
Season 3, Episode 11, “Protect The Coven”
Cordelia Goode (Sarah Paulson) loses her sight after getting acid in her eyes, but in return, she receives the power to see events that have or will happen. Upon receiving a new set of eyes that leads to her losing her abilities,she takes drastic measures to restore her powers.
One of SarahPaulson’s most likableAmerican Horror Storycharactersre-earns her gift of foresight by plunging a pair of garden shears into her new eyes.
Even those with strong constitutions won’t expect such vile actions as Cordelia displays how many characters fromAmerican Horror Storywill go to such great and gross lengths so they can fulfill their duties or achieve their goals. In this case, Cordelia stabbing her eyes serves as a moment of desperation to regain a part of who she was. The ensuing carnage is brutal to look away from, as it’s also a reminder of how the series can showcase themes of trauma through body and psychological horror.
4Polk Family Dinner
Season 6, Episode 7, “Chapter 7”
All the supernatural horrorAmerican Horror Story: Roanokecan offer is nothing compared to the realistic horror it portrays through the Polk Family featured in this season. The Polk Family represents the most disgustingAHShorror references to classic filmslikeThe Hills Have EyesandThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
The Polks display this terror through their horrific actions, especially after they kidnap protagonists Audrey (Sarah Paulson), Lee (Adina Porter), and Monet (Angela Bassett), who are then forced to join them for dinner. The captured women are tortured into eating meat that was carved out of Lee’s legs, making for a stomach-twisting scene that highlights rural horror at its most bizarre.American Horror Storyisn’t unfamiliar with gratuitous gore, with this moment being a prime example of it during the series' most violent season.
3Adeline’s Death
Season 12, Episode 7, “Ave Hestia”
For most ofAmerican Horror Story: Delicate,it is believed Dex Harding’s (Matt Czuchry) first wife, Adeline (Annabelle Dexter-Jones), passed away due to a fire. In actuality, she suffered a more gruesome demise at the hands of a dangerous cult that sacrificed pregnant women to sustain their eternal youth. When Adeline becomes pregnant herself, her physical and emotional unraveling comes to an end as she’s strapped down, has her stomach cut open, and the cult members bathe in her blood before they set her on fire.
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The sense of dread and disgust never leaves, nor does the helplessness and vulnerability Adeline goes through until the last moments of her life. The elements surrounding her fate will linger in anyone’s memory. Adeline’s death scene is drenched in eerie symbolism behind the unsettling imagery, as it not only confirms Dex’s new wife, Anna’s (Emma Roberts) fears surrounding her pregnancy, but also its use of body and psychological horror intertwined withDelicate’sthemes of motherhood make for a scene that’s both dizzying and disgusting.
2The Addiction Demon’s Introduction
Season 5, Episode 1, “Checking In”
InAmerican Horror Story: Hotel,the Addiction Demon appears early on as it represents the darker side of obsession and dependency. Right from the beginning, its presence is unsettling as it embodies the destructive nature of addiction itself.
The lasting impression it left on one of the bestAmerican Horror Storyseason’s first episodes was already enough due to the jump scare it brought.
The standout representation of this is after a hotel resident named Gabriel (Max Greenfield) trips on a substance. He soon sees the harrowing, faceless creature in his room, but he hardly has time to react to its revolting, pale, and greasy figure before the Demon throws him on the bed and takes advantage of him with a drill bit.The Addiction Demon’s form was created after years of substance abuse under the Cortez Hotel roofand used its flesh-crawling appearance to its advantage.
The lasting impression it left on one of the bestAmerican Horror Storyseason’s first episodes was already enough due to the jump scare it brought. The introduction is frantic and frightening as Gabriel is left helpless under this grotesque reflection of the toll addiction takes that disgustingly exploits vulnerabilities and desires only to use them against guests in the cruelest ways.
1Kyle And His Mom
Season 3, Episode 3, “The Replacements”
InAmerican Horror Story: Coven,Kyle’s (Evan Peters) relationship with his mother, Alicia (Mare Winningham), takes a dark turn in the third episode, which is both shocking and disgusting. As college student Kyle Spencer, recently resurrected through witchcraft, returns home, his mother’s predatory nature comes to light. Their relationship is one of the show’s more unsettling and disturbing elements due to the toxicity, unbalanced dynamic, and Alicia’s overbearing attachment to her son.
Kyle’s relationship with his mother is one of the more grotesque horrors inAmerican Horror Story.This season explored the depths of human depravity with a sense of realistic dread, revealing a breaking of boundaries that leads to a significant amount of discomfort as a sinister looming purpose is highlighted. The disgusting lack of boundaries and psychological control, although containing some supernatural elements, are also depicted realistically due to the manipulative manner displayed that creates a sense of unease and leaves those who witness it disturbed by the inappropriate implications.
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.
