For today’s post, I have decided to do a countdown of my top five favorite performances by Sarah Paulson on American Horror Story. Once again, like with the previous lists in this series, I may change my opinion on exact positions with re-watches, but not my number one! Without further ado, here’s day four of Horror Week!
Number 5: Wilhelmina Venable (AHS: Apocalypse)
~While this was not a character whom we got to see much of, she made an impact. Her purple, her Victorian attitude, and her Type-A personality all played a role in creating a sense of dread at the Outpost!
Number 4: Billie Dean Howard (AHS: Various, beginning with Murder House)
~Billie Dean is one of those characters who appeared in multiple seasons, never as the main character. She is an integral part of the series, as she is a medium who can communicate with the dead and is able to give important foreshadowing information, like the first mention of the Roanoke colony back in season one.
Number 3: Sally McKenna (AHS: Hotel)
~This is an example of Sarah Paulson really making the most of her character. A character who could have seemed like the one-note ghost of an addict becomes a truly layered character that you feel a lot of sympathy for in this season! While it was not one of her biggest roles, I think she did a great job here.
Number 2: Lana Winters (AHS: Asylum & Roanoke)
~This was her first starring role in American Horror Story, and boy was it a doozy. Lana goes through absolute hell in this season, from being unfairly committed to an asylum to conversion therapy to having her lover murdered to rape to birthing the child of that violence! It all reached an apex when she had to kill her own son, whom she had given up for adoption, and who became he was a serial killer just like his father! She would also appear in the sixth season to interview the last Roanoke survivor.
Number 1: Cordelia Goode (AHS: Coven & Apocalypse)
~Of course, no one but the Supreme herself, Cordelia Goode, could rank as number one for me! She is loving, caring, intelligent, and powerful. We get to see her undergo a transformation to gain her powers of Supreme that were repressed due to her overpowering mother’s presence! I adore how she treats the young witches and her relationship with Myrtle Snow, who was much more of a mother than Fiona ever was! She overcomes huge trauma, like finding out her husband was a witch hunter all along, to become one of the most powerful women imaginable. In Apocalypse we see her continuing to run her school of witches and attempting to prevent the end of the world!
~I hope you have enjoyed this list. Did I include your favorite Sarah Paulson character? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
White Rose of Avalon 