TV & Movies

The Creepy Beach Town Where AHS Season 10 Was Filmed Is Home To A Serial Killer

How fitting.

American Horror Story’s seasons have unfolded everywhere from a haunted Los Angeles hotel to a Floridian circus, but for Season 10, the show is heading to the East Coast. Titled American Horror Story: Double Feature, the season follows a struggling writer (Finn Wittrock) and his family as they move to an isolated beach town in Massachusetts. “I’ve been coming out here to write for a few years now. This place inspires us,” Evan Peters’ character Austin ominously says in the trailer.

The season is broken into two separate stories: Part 1, titled Red Tide, takes place “by the sea” while Part 2, titled Death Valley, is set “by the sand.” According to Boston.com, Part 1 was filmed in Provincetown, Massachusetts, a foggy town that made national news for being the home of serial killer Antone “Tony” Costa in the 1960s. Creator Ryan Murphy has shared some photos of the actors with Provincetown tagged, and you can see a sign for the town in a trailer for Part 1. Murphy also has his own luxury home in Provincetown that sits by the water, which he bought over five years ago.

Per Boston.com, Red Tide was filmed at 19 locations across Provincetown. Featured locations include Pilgrim Monument, Winthrop Street Cemetery, and Mews Restaurants, as well as the intersection of Snail Road and Commercial Street and in the center of town near Standish and Gosnold streets.

While we don’t yet know much about the season’s story, WickedLocal.com reported that one scene involves simulated gunfire in a cul-de-sac, while another involves a Jeep happening across a dead deer on Route 6. The production also listed MacMillan Pier as a backup location, but it’s unclear whether that was used.

In all, filming in Provincetown only lasted for the first two weeks of March 2021. Murphy told The Wrap that the vibe for the story he was aiming for was very “weather-dependent” and he’d originally planned to film during summer 2020 before the pandemic hit. He floated the idea of switching to a theme from another future season, but considering they did ultimately film in Massachusetts, it seems like he stuck to the original concept.

The rest of the season was primarily filmed in California. Reddit users spotted production on the beach in Oxnard, a seaside town about 60 miles from Los Angeles. And fans on Twitter said the team was also seen filming at Port Hueneme’s docks, which is by Oxnard. While the central plot of Red Tide has remained a mystery, the various waterfront and beach locations definitely suggest it will have to do with something dangerous lurking underwater. As Murphy wrote alongside an Instagram post of a water-logged skull with shark-like teeth, “Let it take you under.”