The 'American Horror Story: 1984' Premiere Date Is Sooner Than Fans Expected

Another bone-chilling installment of American Horror Story is coming soon, and now fans have an exact date to write in their calendars. But the strange thing is that now we know when the new season will premiere, but so much about the upcoming ninth season is still shrouded in mystery. FX announced the American Horror Story: 1984 premiere date, and the mysterious new season is only a few months away from airing.

Season 9 of American Horror Story will officially debut on FX on Sept. 18, meaning fans have less than three months to wait to dive into whatever twisted new story Ryan Murphy has come up with. The mid-September premiere date follows the show's recent pattern in premiering slightly earlier than its original October debuts. The first five season of the show premiered in October, but the past three season have been bumped up to September premieres.

While the premiere date itself is not too much of a surprise, what make the announcement alarming is that fans know considerably less about this upcoming season than about any previous season at the time of the premiere date announcement. In the past, showrunner Ryan Murphy would often reveal which cast members would be starring in the season or explain the theme for the season prior to its release, but this time, all fans have to go off of is a title and a pair of cast members... nothing else.

The only things that fans know for sure about Season 9 at this point is that it will be called American Horror Story: 1984, it will star Emma Roberts and Gus Kenworthy, and it will premiere on Sept. 18. Actually, the most shocking detail is not who will be in the new season but who won't be. Evan Peters confirmed he won't be in AHS this season, marking his first time ever not appearing in a season of the anthology series. And Peters' fellow AHS regular Sarah Paulson also made some comments that have fans worried she may also sit this season out. The only cast members that are confirmed are alum Emma Roberts and newcomer Gus Kenworthy, who will be playing a couple.

The theme of the new season is also a big question mark at this point. Ryan Murphy revealed the season is called 1984, and a brief teaser clip showing a killer chasing a woman through the woods hints that the season will be an homage to '80s slasher flicks, but the full breadth of the title's meaning is still unclear.

American Horror Story: 1984 comes on the heels of the franchise's most ambitious season ever, as last year's Apocalypse served as a world-ending, time-jumping crossover for multiple previous seasons of the show. The crossover element of the season also meant that perfect-attendance actors Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters played multiple roles over the course of the season. 1984 promises to be a return to form for AHS by focusing on a new, standalone story, but will also be breaking new ground by not featuring Evan Peters.

American Horror Story: 1984 will premiere on FX on Sept. 18 at 10 p.m. ET.