The sixth episode of American Horror Story’s 13th season, titled “The Return of Devil’s Night,” brought back a signature crossover concept from the franchise’s Hotel season. The episode featured the return of serial killer characters summoned by Evan Peters’ James Patrick March, including Jeffrey Dahmer, portrayed by Seth Gabel. This time, the killers targeted the witches from the Coven season, led by Sarah Paulson’s Cordelia Goode, with the episode ending on a cliffhanger involving an axe attack and the invasion of the witches’ sanctuary.
Gabel discussed the unusual circumstances of reprising his Dahmer role, noting that Peters had subsequently played the same serial killer in Murphy and Ian Brennan’s Monster anthology series, The Jeffrey Dahmer Story. Despite the potential awkwardness of the situation, Gabel said Peters remained focused on his March character and encouraged Gabel to fully inhabit the Dahmer role. The two actors did not exchange performance notes or tips regarding the character.
For his original Hotel appearance, Gabel explained that he approached the role with satirical intent rather than strict realism. Murphy reportedly guided his portrayal with two words—”Poor Jeffrey”—which unlocked Gabel’s understanding of the character as someone who viewed himself as a victim despite his actions. Gabel conducted extensive research into Dahmer’s psychology for the initial role, exploring the character’s background and repression, but indicated he did not require additional preparation for his return in the crossover season.
Gabel teased that the seventh episode would pick up from the cliffhanger with an “explosive” continuation of the conflict between the serial killers and the witches. He also noted the meta nature of the situation, with two separate portrayals of the same historical figure appearing in the same season of the anthology series.
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