Ryan Murphy may be moving his operation to Netflix, but American Horror Story looks as familiar as ever. Newly confirmed for the eighth season are returning faves Evan Peters and Kathy Bates, while Murphy himself hesitates to strike down a certain “Radioactive” rumor.

Murphy had only previously confirmed that Sarah Paulson would keep American Horror Story on her increasingly busy schedule for Season 8, as well that the next run was likely to take us into the future. Now, Entertainment Weekly confirms Kathy Bates will return to the franchise next season, after the Oscar-winning actress sat out Cult for her now-canceled Netflix series Disjointed. The article also lists Peters’ return as a given, though that bit had not previously been reported. Says Murphy:

Kathy and Sarah Paulson have a lot of great stuff to get to do. So, with Evan Peters, the three of them are the leads this year.

And while it remains to be seen if FX or Ryan Murphy will play any guessing games with Season 8’s title, the showrunner was unwilling to strike down recent reports that an American Horror Story: Radioactive title had been registered by FOX. “I heard about that rumor,” said Murphy. “Well, that’s based on a fact that we’ve cleared a lot of titles for that show. It’s an interesting idea. I can neither confirm nor deny.” Radioactive post-apocalyptic future it is! Maybe.

Still unconfirmed is whether Murder House and Asylum star Dylan McDermott will be making a long-awaited return, but expect further details as American Horror Story Season 8 goes before cameras this summer.

Gallery – Every Evan Peters and Sarah Paulson ‘AHS’ Character, Ranked

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