Ryan Murphy can’t stop winning this year. “American Horror Stories” hit No. 1 on Hulu’s Top 15 Today the week of its debut, making it the eighth Murphy show to hit dominate viewership in 2024.
“It’s like having eight children and they all got accepted to college,” Murphy told TheWrap. “I’m like, ‘OK, well, I did my job.’ It feels good.”
It’s an unprecedented winning streak that started in January with the star-studded “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans” from Murphy, Jaffe Cohen and Michael Zam, a series that was nominated for 10 Emmys and won for Outstanding Period Costumes for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie. It was then followed by the second half of “American Horror Story: Delicate” in April, a season that was showrun by Halley Feiffer and led by Emma Roberts and Kim Kardashian. Both jumped to the No. 1 spot on Hulu’s Top 15 list after their premieres.
But it wasn’t until the fall that Murphy’s winning streak kicked into high gear.
Mid-September marked the premiere of “American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez,” which was developed by Stu Zicherman. That was followed by Murphy and Brad Falchuk’s “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story,” a drama that secured 12.3 million views on Netflix during its debut week, securing the top spot on Netflix’s Top 10 English language TV list. FX’s “Grotesquerie” — a thriller from Murphy, Jon Robin Baitz and Joe Baken — joined the ranks next. Both “American Sports Story” and “Grotesquerie” hit the No. 1 spot on Hulu’s Top 15 Today list their first full day on the network, an insider told TheWrap.
On the broadcast side of the business, the Season 8 premiere of “9-1-1” from Murphy, Falchuk and Tim Minear was the most-watched broadcast program the night of its debut. The drama saw 4.77 million viewers in live plus same day viewing and secured a 0.5 in the 18 to 49 year old demo. That was followed by “Doctor Odyssey,” ABC’s new emergency drama for Murphy, Baitz, and Baken and starring Joshua Jackson. That became ABC’s most-watched drama debut in four years following the David E. Kelley drama “Big Sky,” securing 7.59 million total viewers in live plus three day viewing and a 0.38 rating in the demo. “Doctor Odyssey” also ranked No. 1 on Hulu’s list the day of its debut.
In fact, the only Murphy show to not reach No. 1 status this year has been “9-1-1: Lone Star,” which is currently in its final season on Fox and comes from Murphy, Falchuk and Minear. Still, the Sept. 23 premiere secured the network’s most watched linear and largest total multiplatform audience for a scripted telecast in a year and a half, scoring 4.2 million viewers and 4.9 million viewers, respectively. Though “9-1-1: Lone Star” didn’t quite hit the highs of his other shows, Murphy praised it performance and added he “always consider that in the family.”
Having one No. 1 show on any platform is enough to make a career. But for a creator to have eight No. 1 shows across five networks in a single year is something that hasn’t happened before, at least not in recent TV history.
“I had no idea that they were all going to work the way that they did.” Murphy said. “I’m kind of astonished at it, actually. You make things, and some of them you make for different reasons, but to have audiences embrace all eight of them … I’m just so proud of the year that we’ve had.”
As part of his well-earned victory lap, Murphy spoke to TheWrap about how “American Horror Stories” has become an incubation hub for exciting talent, the future of “American Horror Story” and why collaborating with other showrunners has become so essential to him at this stage in his career.
TheWrap: How are you thinking about “American Horror Stories” currently? Because it almost feels like like an incubation for talent you want to work with. I know Max Winkler was working with you on “Horror Stories” before he moved to “Grotesquerie.”
Ryan Murphy: I’m just proud of Max and Alexis [Martin Woodall]. [“American Horror Stories”] that was one that I was very involved in the first season, not so much the second.
I think people who have long careers are people who can work with the next generation of talent. You’ve seen Spielberg do that. Scorsese does that. It’s just a smart thing to do, because not only do they have different perspectives than you, but they’re usually very hungry and they have a lot to prove. So this season, I said to Max and Alexis, ‘You guys take it over.’
All of those ideas are my ideas for the episodes — I worked with a guy named Andrew Duplessie on a lot of them — and then things that I’m interested in talking about, particularly backrooms. I was fascinated with the online community for backgrounds. We wrote [the episodes] with various people, and I gave them to Max and Alexis, and I said, ‘Do whatever you want.’
I was so impressed with what they did. That whole group then moved right after [“American Horror Stories”] wrapped and did “Grotesquerie,” including Kim Jennings, the production designer. Now she’s working on “The Beauty.” So it kind of was like this great incubator for a whole new way of working that I’m thankful for.
The last season of ‘American Horror Story’ was the first that you didn’t run. What was it like letting that go? And as the series moves on, do you foresee continuing to let other people take it over?
I guess it just depends on what the idea is. I’m always developing several of those. I mean, yes. The showrunner of that season is working on her other season, and that’s incredible. I’ve talked to Sarah Paulson about a thing that she and I would do with Evan [Peters]. Obviously, if we do that, then I would do that. So there’s all different ways to skin the cat, as they say.
I had such a building year in my company with all of these shows that I couldn’t do all of them. I was always involved heavily in “Delicate” with Emma [Roberts] and Kim [Kardashian] and the look and design of it. But I couldn’t physically be in New York because I was [in Los Angeles]. But that’s cool. I like how we’re working in my company now.
How long do you see ‘American Horror Story’ going on for if you had your way could control how long your shows continue?
John Landgraf is so cool about that. He always says, “Well, it’s really up to you. I’ll keep putting him on the air and making them.” I have the luxury of my deal, and also it just aired. So it’s not like it’s been gone forever.
I would keep doing it for a long time. Sarah Paulson and I talk a lot about that too, like, shoot the finale at her funeral, so to speak. A lot of people who made that have stayed with us through the years … When we first started it, we were really like a troupe, and I didn’t have children then, so I was a completely different person. I was able to go, at Jessica Lange’s command, to New Orleans. I couldn’t do that now. Now I’m excited that Sarah is interested in it again, I’m excited that Evan — in the right part — would be interested. There’s a large group of people that I would like to return to that show, including Angela Bassett and on and on and on. It’s fun. But I have to have something to say, or somebody else, another showrunner, has to have something to say.
To that point, with “American Horror Story,” “American Horror Stories” and even “9-1-1,” you’ve taken a step back lately and let these really incredible people in your company go forward. What has it been like for you to take that step back?
Great and I’m proud. Tim Minear has done an incredible job with that “9-1-1” franchise. I love working with him. He and I, we did “Horror Story” together at the beginning. We did “FEUD: Betty and Joan” together, and then he was off doing “9-1-1” and then I my schedule got packed. He and I are recently back together in the saddle working on the pilot of the next “9-1-1” spinoff that’s going to shoot in March. So having Tim back on there, that’s been really fun. Tim and I talk all the time. He’s just a pro, and he gets it. Alexis and Max get it. I just love the collaborations that I’ve got going.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
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