List of American Horror Story: Hotel characters

American Horror Story: Hotel is the fifth season of the FX horror anthology series American Horror Story. This season focuses on addiction, the longing attachment to a particular habit or practice especially with drugs. The story takes place in Los Angeles, California during the year 2015 and focuses on the retro Downtown Los Angeles Hotel Cortez that is haunted by gruesome murders and supernatural activity which attracts homicidal detective John Lowe who is studying the killings committed by a Biblical serial murderer who points him to Room 64 of the Cortez. He is haunted by the abduction of his son, Holden who disappeared in 2010 at an amusement park. He enlists the residents to help him find the identity of the killer but learn that they have all previously died and that they are ghosts. The hotel is owned by Elizabeth Johnson also known as The Countess who is obsessed with fashion, sex and craves human blood who she uses by her metallic, fingernail glove. Upon the recent purchase of Will Drake, she plans to marry him and then murder him before stealing his fortunes in order to regain her wealth and total happiness alongside her towhead children and her role as owner of the Cortez but comes with many challenges including her past lovers and a recent outbreak.

Veteran cast members include Wes Bentley, Chloë Sevigny, Kathy Bates, Denis O'Hare, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson, Matt Bomer, and Angela Bassett, with Lady Gaga and Cheyenne Jackson making their debut. Special guest stars include Naomi Campbell. Veteran cast members with recurring appearances include Mare Winningham, Lily Rabe, Matt Ross, Finn Wittrock, Christine Estabrook, John Carroll Lynch, and Anthony Ruivivar. This is the second season that is not strictly anthological, with Christine Estabrook, and Matt Ross reprising their previous roles Marcy (Murder House), Charles Montgomery (Murder House) respectively, and Gabourey Sidibe reprising her role as Queenie from Coven. Paulson herself also reprised a previous character from Murder House (Billie Dean Howard). This is the first season not to feature mainstay Jessica Lange. This is also the first season not to feature Frances Conroy in any capacity.

Cast members

Main cast

Actor	Character	Role
Kathy Bates	Iris	Main
Sarah Paulson	Sally McKenna and Billie Dean Howard	Main
Evan Peters	James Patrick March	Main
Wes Bentley	Det. John Lowe	Main
Matt Bomer	Donovan	Main
Chloë Sevigny	Dr. Alex Lowe	Main
Denis O'Hare	Liz Taylor	Main
Cheyenne Jackson	Will Drake	Main
Angela Bassett	Ramona Royale	Main
Lady Gaga	Elizabeth Johnson	Main

Supporting cast

Actor	Character	Role
Mare Winningham	Hazel Evers	Special Guest Star
Lennon Henry	Holden Lowe	Recurring
Richard T. Jones	Andrew Hahn	Recurring
Jessica Belkin	Wren	Recurring
Shree Crooks	Scarlett Lowe	Recurring
Finn Wittrock	Tristan Duffy and Rudolph Valentino	Special Guest Star
Alexander Ward	The Addiction Demon / Mattress Man	Recurring
Lyric Lennon	Lachlan Drake	Recurring
Anton Lee Starkman	Max Ellison	Recurring
Kamilla Alnes	Agnetha	Recurring
Helena Mattsson	Vendela	Recurring
Max Greenfield	Gabriel	Recurring
Mädchen Amick	Mrs. Ellison	Recurring
Alexandra Daddario	Natacha Rambova	Recurring
Christine Estabrook	Marcy	Recurring
Naomi Campbell	Claudia Bankson	Special Guest Star
Lily Rabe	Aileen Wuornos	Special Guest Star
Darren Criss	Justin	Recurring
John Carroll Lynch	John Wayne Gacy	Guest Star
Seth Gabel	Jeffrey Dahmer	Guest Star
Anthony Ruivivar	Richard Ramirez	Guest Star
Jessica Lu	Babe	Guest Star
Charles Melton	Mr. Wu	Guest Star
Gabourey Sidibe	Queenie	Special Guest Star
Roxana Brusso	Dr. Kohan	Guest Star
David Naughton	Mr. Samuels	Guest Star
Nico Evers-Swindell	Craig	Guest Star
Robert Knepper	Lieutenant	Guest Star
Kristen Ariza	Mrs. Pritchard	Guest Star
Mouzam Makkar	Nurse Leena	Guest Star
Matt Ross	Charles Montgomery	Guest Star
David Barrera	Dr. Kaplan	Guest Star

Characters

Main characters

• Iris (Kathy Bates) is the manager of the Hotel Cortez who works at the reception desk and is often seen doing crossword puzzles. Despite hating staying at the hotel, she remains in order to keep proximity to her son Donovan, who despises her after divorcing his father and becoming involved in a breatharian cult, causing her to refrain from giving him proper medicine. She remains protective of him, pushing Sally McKenna out of a window of the hotel's seventh floor after she supplied him with China White heroin, which killed him in 1994. Since then, the two have maintained an ongoing rivalry. After Donovan rejects her in a heated confrontation, Iris enlists the help of Sally in order to commit suicide, but a damaged Donovan revives her by inflicting her with the blood virus. She initially rejects killing, but is driven to it when her craving for blood takes a physical toll. She teams up with Donovan and Ramona Royale to kill the Countess as revenge, despite her initial loyalty to the Countess, killing guests and detoxing them so she may serve them blood, where her relationship with Donovan begins to improve as he enjoys his mother's more murderous and rogue behavior. Their relationship deteriorates when Donovan reunited with Elizabeth and calls off the truce between the trio. Iris warns him of his impending downfall, to which Ramona testifies to. She plans on committing suicide with her friend Liz Taylor, but decides to enact revenge on Elizabeth and gain control of the hotel. They go into The Countess's penthouse, guns blazing, fatally wounding The Countess and Donovan. The Countess escapes when Iris refuses Liz Taylor's plea to find her, running to Donovan's aid. Donovan says it's too late for him and as a dying wish he asks her to take him off the hotel's premise. They succeed, as Donovan dies in the street, telling Iris, "I love you, mom". For her performance, Bates was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actress in a Movie/Miniseries and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie.
• Sally McKenna (Sarah Paulson), also known as Hypodermic Sally, is a drug addict who died on the property of the Hotel Cortez in 1994 when Iris shoved her out of a hotel window and plummeted seven stories to her death after killing her son Donovan with a contaminated heroin needle. She has since resided in the hotel and considers it her home, unable to leave, maintaining a rivalry with Iris. She follows drug addicts around the hotel, such as Gabriel, where she uses The Addiction Demon to enact the consequences of their addiction. She sews all of her victims into the mattresses of the hotel, one of which was found in Vendela and Agnetha's bed. She is constantly seen taunting John, believing they're destined to be lovers. She and James March have an agreement to share John, allowing James to let him be a buffer for the remaining Commandment Killings, in exchange for protection from The Addiction Demon. As John realizes he is the killer, he and Sally begin to bond, but he quickly leaves her for Alex, where she vows to kill him for abandoning her. After John's death, Sally is convinced by Iris to interact with others on a social network. For her performance, Paulson was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Movie/Miniseries and the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Movie.
• James Patrick March (Evan Peters), sometimes referred to as Jimmy or Mr. March, is a wealthy oil business man and serial killer, who used his money to construct the Hotel Cortez in the late 1920s, built to serve his need to kill, by incorporating secret shafts and dead end hallways to hide the victims of his murders, along with the help of his loyal servant and hotel laundress, Hazel Evers. His father was a militant theist and was implied to be abusive toward him, resulting in James resenting religion and God. After murdering a theistic victim who claimed that he would never win, James decided to commit a series of murders based on the ten commandments: murdering people who broke said commandments and harvesting a body part. He met Elizabeth at the opening of the Cortez, when he prevented her from committing suicide upon Rudolph Valentino's alleged death. The two married at the Cortez, but James had had unreciprocated feelings of affection toward the Countess, as she was looking for somebody to fill the void left in her by Rudolph's death. When Elizabeth resumes her polygamous relationship with Rudolph and his wife Natacha Rambova, he abducts them and enclosed them in a dead end hallway, where they remain for the next ninety years. Elizabeth initially encourages he use his murderous habits in a progressive manner, killing those who may offer revenue. However, it's believed that she eventually turned James in for control of the hotel and his wealth. He kills himself in his office at 2:25 AM when the police are alerted to his activities. His office was later converted in Room 64, where the clock's alarm goes off at 2:25 AM every morning. Since his death, he and Elizabeth have an arrangement where she and James must have dinner one night per month, but one is interrupted by Donovan and a drunken John Lowe, who he recruits as his successor, through manipulation, to complete the remaining eight Commandment Killings upon seeing John's rage while intoxicated, claiming he is better than killers such as Dahmer and Gacy. Elizabeth continues to reject him, but, due to her "immense beauty", he has forgiven her. Her shows Elizabeth's new husband, Will Drake, Bartholomew, Elizabeth's only biological son and likely James' son as well. Will insults the aesthetic of the child and Elizabeth kills him in a fit of rage. He hosts a "Devil's Night" soirée every year where dead serial killers he personally mentored come to celebrate and congratulate each other on their murders. For his performance, Peters is nominated for the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best TV Supporting Actor.
• Det. John Lowe (Wes Bentley) is a Los Angeles homicide detective, husband of Alex Lowe, and father of Scarlett and Holden. The latter of which was kidnapped five years ago at a carnival in Santa Monica, leaving his marriage damaged. He is investigating a series of murders that take place in Los Angeles. He receives a call originating from Room 64 of the Hotel Cortez, where he goes to investigate, only finding an empty room. He receives a text from Alex with an address, asking for help. When he arrives at the house, twin boys are found murdered and disemboweled. He leaves the house when he realizes they had hacked Alex's phone and fear his presence at the house will endanger her and Scarlett, and checks into Room 64 of the Hotel. During his stay, he sees, what he believes are, hallucinations of his lost son Holden, unaged since his abduction. He learns about the origins of the hotel from Iris, and learns that the murders he is investigating may be connected to the late James March and the ten commandments. John, due to his addiction to alcohol, is targeted by Sally, believing that he is her destined lover. He rejects her advancements, as he is still faithful to his wife. But when he discovers that his wife has gone around his back and reunited with their son Holden, and then convinces him that he is psychotic in order to absolve the idea that Holden is still alive so she may spend eternity with him, he embraces Sally. He suffers from long periods of unconsciousness, which Sally explains is the result of him drinking and being recruited by James March to complete the series of murders he started, and that he has been the one committing the Ten Commandment Killings. When he confesses this to his partner, Andrew Hahn, he explains to John that the murders started months before he checked into the hotel. John then regains his memory of going to the Blue Parrot Lounge, the bar at the hotel, for drinks after a case where a father commits suicide upon finding his entire family dead. Donovan takes him to James, who deems him a worthy successor and successfully convinced him through a long 2 day conversation that the world no longer gives justice to those who he believes deserve it. He remembers being convinced to take the lead on the case and killing each of the victims he has been investigating. He turns Andy into one of his victims when he discovers he has been having coffee with Alex, citing the commandment: "Thou shalt not covet". John has embraced his dark side and began freely killing. He reunited with Alex and helps her halt a blood virus outbreak while killing off the Countess as his last victim in James's collection. He decides to reunite his family, providing blood for his wife and son before he gunned down by the police before he could enter the hotel. As a result, John can only visit his family once a year on Halloween. For his performance, Bentley was nominated for the Critics' Choice Television Award for Best Actor in a Movie/Miniseries.
• Donovan (Matt Bomer) is the arrogant resident of the hotel who was the partner of Elizabeth of over twenty-years, since Elizabeth revived him by infecting him with the blood virus when she discovers him dying in the hotel due to using a dirty needle. Since then, he has vowed to stay away from drugs. Elizabeth values "the hunt", where she tracks down the proper people to kill and consume their blood, while Donovan values domesticity, and rather stay home. This bores the thrill-seeking Countess, and seeks romance with the more exciting Tristan Duffy, and abandons Donovan. Hurt, he teams up with Ramona Royale and his mother, Iris, of whom he has a difficult relationship with, to murder the Countess as revenge for what she's done to the three of them. However, he still feels affection for Elizabeth, as he gets cold feet when Ramona and him arrive at the hotel to kill the children, and instead returns to the penthouse where he sniffs Elizabeth's clothing. In "The Ten Commandments Killer", it is revealed that Donovan had introduced John to James so John may be denominated James' successor in the killings. After Elizabeth kills Tristan, the two reunite, and he disbands the truce between him, Ramona, and Iris, and traps Ramona in an enclosed hallway. He begins doubting Elizabeth's affection toward him when she sees her kiss Rudolph Valentino, a past lover of hers. He responds by killing Rudolph and disfiguring his face. The Countess, although upset, views this as an act of love, and they reunite, only for Iris and Liz to burst in and begin firing at them.
• Dr. Alex Lowe (Chloë Sevigny) is John's wife who he becomes estranged to after the abduction of their son Holden five years ago, making at least one suicide attempt since his disappearance, citing that she has grown closer to Holden than she has to Scarlett or John. She is a pediatrician who is employed by Mrs. Ellison, a west Hollywood mother against vaccination, to treat her son Max Ellison, who has been infected with the measles. She visits a drunken John at the hotel to drop off divorce papers, she encounters Holden in the halls, and brings him back home, where he insists that he bring her back to the hotel so he can see his "other mommy". She interrogates the Countess about Holden and why he hasn't aged since his abduction, where she learns about the ancient blood virus the Countess has infected the towheads with. Symptoms include eternal youth, although they are able to be killed via unconventional methods and a thirst for blood. She then infects Alex so she may remain with Holden forever. When Max is entered into the hospital where his conditions worsens. Alex infects him with the blood virus to save him, but this results in him killing his parents, teacher, principal, and several school nurses in order to consume their blood, as well as spreading the measles to his friends. Later, John discovers them and she enlists the help of Liz to destroy any evidence of her being there. She convinces John that he is spiraling into insanity, and that the hotel is only aiding his departure from reality. After hearing about a series of killings in which adults have their blood drained, Elizabeth sends Alex on a mission to contain the outbreak, threatening to kill her and Holden. Her and John trap the group of children in the enclosed hallway with a blood-thirsty Ramona after convincing them to come back to the hotel to be towheads. Her and John reunited and take Holden home, where a heartbroken Sally vows to kill John.
• Liz Taylor (Denis O'Hare) is the eccentric, transgender bartender of the Blue Parrot Lounge and long-time worker of the hotel. Formerly known as Nick Pryor, Liz worked as a medical representative up until 1984, and was in an unhappy marriage to a woman named Tracy with two kids, of whom she displayed no affection towards. While on a business trip in Los Angeles, she meets the Countess in her hotel room while dressed up in her wife's clothes. Elizabeth does her make-up, similar to her namesake, Elizabeth Taylor, and dubs her Liz Taylor. The Countess suggests that they go out so Liz can feel like her true self, but fearful of the reaction, the two settle on Liz taking a walk down the hallway. While doing so, Liz encounters her two coworkers, who threaten to expose her while hurling homophobic slurs. Fearful that they may hurt Liz, Elizabeth slits their throats in front of her and persuades Liz to pursue her true self at the Cortez. She then quits her jobs and breaks off her marriage, sending money to her kids every month. It is revealed in "Room Service" that, although she was very close to Elizabeth, she was never infected. Liz becomes enamored with Elizabeth's new flare, Tristan Duffy. When the two confront Elizabeth about their love for each other, Elizabeth says that Liz may have Tristan, moments before slitting his throat in front of her. In "Room 33", it is revealed that she is very close with Elizabeth's ex-girlfriend Ramona Royale. Since then, Liz has scrapped all loyalty to the Countess, even making a vain attempt to stop her wedding. She plans on killing herself, but has second thoughts when her son, Douglas Pryor, asks her to rejoin his life. She then decides to team up with Iris and take over the hotel and kill the Countess. After the Countess is finally killed, Liz and Iris manage to fix up the hotel and some of the ghosts with Liz helping Will keep his business alive. But when Liz learns she has cancer, she allows the Countess to kill her to remain in the hotel as a ghost.
• Will Drake (Cheyenne Jackson) is the recent purchaser and owner of the Cortez. Similar to Liz, he loves art and fashion, formerly living in New York City as a fashion mogul, but moves to Los Angeles with his son Lachlan after he felt that "the pulse" of the city was gone. Will, despite being gay, displays obvious attraction toward women, leading him to identify as bisexual. He plans to knock down and renovate the hotel, which upsets the residents, namely Donovan who doesn't take kindly to Will's arrival. He begins a relationship with Elizabeth, and later marries her in the hotel lobby. He has construction workers knock down a concrete wall which held the past lovers of Elizabeth, Rudolph Valentino and Natacha Rambova, unleashing them. He celebrates his marriage at the Blue Parrot Lounge, where he meets James March, who brings him too Room 33. Will is disgusted by hideous appearance of Elizabeth's only son, Bartholomew. Although Elizabeth planned to murder him early on in their relationship, she bumps up her murder plan and locks him away in the enclosed hallway with a weakened and bloodthirsty Ramona Royale, who tricks Will into unlocking her cage, allowing her to slit his throat and consume his blood as Elizabeth watches from a monitor in her room. He resents Elizabeth for killing him, and interrupts her interview with a police where she was filing a police report for his disappearance. James taunts Elizabeth, telling her that he informed her not to kill him on the property.
• Ramona Royale (Angela Bassett) is a well known actress and Elizabeth's ex lover. She was an actress who did many TV commercials and movies during the 1970s during when she had a homosexual relationship with The Countess who killed her boyfriend in the 1990s which Ramona witnessed. Following her boyfriend's death, her acting career ultimately failed and she moved into her parents' house. Her mother was suffering from cancer, and her father was suffering Alzheimer's and she had to take good care of them. After her mother died, a group of robbers broke into the house and killed her father who she resurrected by her blood virus and he then started going on a killing spree and ultimately led to Ramona drowning her father in the bathtub to put him out of his misery. She is introduced in "Mommy" and plans to get revenge on her ex for her boyfriend's murder. Her plan comes into action when she plans to stab Elizabeth in her sleep in "She Wants Revenge" but Donovan ends up betraying her by tazing her and both Elizabeth and Donovan put her in the neon cages in the sealed hallways alongside Will Drake. Will eventually releases himself and while attempting to free Ramona, she slits his throat and drinks his blood while Elizabeth watches via cameras. Ramona also killed off the infected children, though she was ill by the time Liz and Iris find her. After Liz and Iris provide her with Queenie, managing to subdue the human voodoo doll with James's help, Ramona ends up becoming the new owner of the Hotel Cortez. In the finale, Ramona joins Devil's Night and assists in torturing Billie Dean Howard who flees the Cortez. For her performance, Bassett was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Television Movie, Mini-Series or Dramatic Special.
• Elizabeth Johnson (Lady Gaga), also known as The Countess, is the enigmatic, bloodsucking, malevolent owner who resides in the penthouse of the Hotel Cortez. Born Elizabeth Johnson in 1904, she was an actress who was featured in Rudolph Valentino's movie and was later invited to dinner at his house. That night, she met his wife Natacha Rambova who indicates that their divorce was just a "show" to get publicity. Later on, she had a secret love triangle with Rudolph and Natacha for many years up until when she was at a cocktail party celebrating the opening of the Hotel Cortez and after hearing about Valentino's death in New York, she plans to jump out a window but she is saved by James March who she later marries but however, doesn't profess her love for him. Even though she was married, she often visited Valentino's coffin once a year but encountered a very much alive Valentino and his wife who state that they are infected with a blood virus that saved them from death and turn Elizabeth so she can spend eternity with her one true loves while her disappointed husband watches from afar. After hearing about her secret love with the Valentino's, James gets his revenge by trapping the couple in the sealed hallways of the hotel damaging her relationship with Natacha who believes that Elizabeth trapped her and causing Elizabeth to hate March. In 1994, she turned Donovan, who was dying of a heroin overdose by Sally who was shoved out the window before and since then, she has been his fiancee and paramour but after meeting Tristan Duffy, she dumps him after twenty years of marriage. She also has a relationship with newcomer Will Drake who she marries but then plans to kill him and steal his fortunes. In the 70s, she had a relationship with Ramona Royale which lasted up until the 90s when Elizabeth shot Ramona's boyfriend, Prophet Moses in revenge. She is obsessed with fashion and hates betrayal especially infidelity which she kills Tristan after he professes his love for Liz Taylor. She then gets back with Donovan but he is crushed after she professes her love for Valentino. She reunites with Donovan after he kills Rudolph however Liz and Iris enter shooting guns at the couple before Donovan jumps in front of Elizabeth and is shot before dying outside the Cortez while Elizabeth is injured. She is helped by Sally who vows to never leaving her. Ramona confronts her but while she attempts to enter the elevator, John appears and shoots her five times before she succumbs to her wounds and dies. Her head is placed on "Thou Shall Not Commit Murder" but she resurrects as a ghost and spends eternity with her husband James who thanks her for turning him in to the police and forgives her however Ms. Evers stops and confesses that she turned Mr. March in. After realizing what has happened, she begins to cry while realizing that she's living a personal nightmare; spending the rest of her life with the person she doesn't love. She appears when Liz announces her battle with prostate cancer and slits Liz's throat using her chainmail glove. In the last moments, Elizabeth is at the bar during 2:25 and meets a guest who says he's awaiting some friends. She then says the final lines "You have a jawline for days" before Season 5 ends. For her performance, Gaga won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Miniseries or Television Film and was nominated for the People's Choice Award for Favorite Sci-Fi/Fantasy TV Actress, the Fangoria Chainsaw Award for Best TV Actress, and the Satellite Award for Best Actress - Television Series Drama.

Supporting characters

• Hazel Evers (Mare Winningham) is the eccentric laundress and maid of Hotel Cortez and loyal servant to James March. She is a ghost who resides in the hotel and cleans up after Elizabeth and James. She killed herself in the hotel with James when they were found by the police. Her son, Albert, was kidnapped by Gordon Northcott and was a victim of the Chicken Coop Murders in the 1920s, causing her to become distraught every Halloween. She is not very fond of Elizabeth, even trying to keep Will from marrying her for his own safety. In "She Wants Revenge", it is revealed that she had feelings for James, but they were unreciprocated since James fell in love with Elizabeth. In "Battle Royale" it is revealed that Hazel turned James into the police so that they could die together.
• Det. Andrew "Andy" Hahn (Richard T. Jones) is John's partner who is working with him closely on the case of the Ten Commandments Killer. He is initially skeptical about the idea of the murders being connected to the ten commandments, but later follows suit. Their relationship strains due to John's gradual lapse into insanity and attacking him when he threatens to go to his superior when John continues to work the case despite being fired. He is later murdered by John after he reveals to Andy that he is the Ten Commandments Killer as Andy broke the commandment of not coveting another man's wife as he had been going out for coffee with Alex.
• Scarlett Lowe (Shree Crooks) is the young daughter of John and Alex Lowe, and sister of Holden. After seeing and speaking to Holden at the hotel while visiting her father, she tells her parents. When they don't believe her, she shows them the picture she took with him on her phone, but Holden's face is blurry. Scarlett goes to live with her grandmother when John fires a gun in their house at Bartholomew, but everybody believes he was hallucinating due to John describing it as a "monster".
• Holden Lowe (Lennon Henry) is the young son of John and Alex Lowe, and brother of Scarlett. In 2010, he was abducted at the Santa Monica amusement park by the Countess and is being raised as one of her vampire children. He previously resides in the hotel, until Alex and John brought him home.
• Tristan Duffy (Finn Wittrock) is a male model who appears in the second episode, "Chutes and Ladders", as one of the models in Will Drake's fashion show. He is attracted by the Countess, who infects him with the virus and becomes her new lover and they scheme to kill Will Drake, inherit his money, and live happily. While in Room 64, he is interrupted by James March, who forces him to kill an innocent woman. Later, after killing a man to drink his blood, he joins forces with March. In "Room 33" he falls in love with Liz and after announcing their love to Elizabeth, she slits his throat in a rage of jealousy and betrayal and kills him.
• The Addiction Demon (Alexander Ward/Mark Steger) is a creature with no facial features who wields a drill-bit instrument that he used to violently sodomize people. He is a "living" metaphor for addiction. He is seen torturing addicts to punish them for their addiction, one of them being Gabriel. James has vowed to protect Sally from it, given that she protects John from any danger so he can use him as a proxy for his Commandment Killings.

Minor characters

• Gabriel (Max Greenfield) is a heroin junkie who checks into and ends up being victim to the Addiction Demon, who savagely rapes him until Sally stops it and sews him into a mattress. Mistaking Claudia for Sally, he murders her. He dies in the hospital from withdrawals after confessing to the murder.
• Agnetha (Helena Mattsson) is a Swedish tourist who checks into the hotel with her sister Vendela. After discovering a grotesque being in their mattress, Iris traps them in the ballroom and planned to detox their bodies until Sally intervened. She was later successfully detoxed by Iris and the towheads drink her blood. She later appears as a ghost in the penthouse, and after being given advice to find a purpose, she translates this as encouragement to kill, and she kills Mr. Wu in his hotel room. Moments later, Alex enlists their help to taunt John out of the hotel.
• Vendela (Kamilla Alnes) is a Swedish tourist and sister of Agnetha. When Sally stops Iris's detox, she releases Vendela who attempts to escape, only to be killed moments later by The Countess in the hotel lobby. She later appears as a ghost in the penthouse, and Donovan advises her to find a purpose. After this translating as encouragement to kill, she kills Mr. Wu in his hotel room, moments before Alex enlists them to taunt John out of the hotel.
• Marcy (Christine Estabrook) is the busybody realtor who showed Will Drake the Hotel Cortez. She was also the realtor who showed the Harmons the Murder House. She reveals that prior to season five, she had to put Hallie, the dog originally owned by the Harmon's, down. She checks into the hotel for a business trip where Rudolph and Natacha kill her and drink her blood.
• Detective Albano (Liana Mendoza) is an LAPD homicide detective.
• Lachlan Drake (Lyric Lennon) is Will Drake's son who seems to have intimate knowledge about the hotel. Elizabeth considers him one of her children now, despite killing his father. Elizabeth plans on infecting him so she may remain his legal guardian forever and inherit everything his dad left him in his will.
• Claudia Bankson (Naomi Campbell) is the editor of Vogue Magazine and close friend of Will Drake, who is later killed by Gabriel who mistook her for Sally. She now resides in the hotel as a ghost.
• Mrs. Ellison (Mädchen Amick) is a west Hollywood mother against vaccination, whose son, Max, falls ill with measles. Alex Lowe is their family doctor, who infects Max with the blood virus to save him after Mrs. Ellison is asked if she would like to sign DNR papers. A blood-thirsty Max kills her and her husband and drinks their blood before leaving for school.
• Max Ellison (Anton Lee Starkman) is the son of Mrs. Ellison, a Hollywood mother against vaccination. In order to save him from dying, Alex injects him with her blood, injecting him with the blood virus, giving the illusion that he is cured. However, at school, he spreads the measles to his entire class and kills five staff members and drinks their blood along with his classmates. He blames an unidentified man for the deaths. Him and his traveling troops of blood sucking classmates have been responsible for the killings of several people in order to consume their blood. Alex attempts to convince them that they should come back to her to the hotel and become towheads, but they reject her offer. After Kimmy dies, they accept Alex's offer, only to end up trapped in the enclosed hallway with Ramona. It is then discovered in the episode "Battle Royale" that he and the rest of his classmates ended up being killed by Ramona with their dead bodies scattered in the enclosed hallway.
• Dr. Kohan (Roxana Brusso) is the Lowe's family psychiatrist who tries to help them move past losing Holden.
• Mr. Samuels (David Naughton) is the movie producer who Ramona tried to persuade into casting her into a role. However, she is stopped by The Countess, who instructs Mr. Samuels to leave.
• Aileen Wuornos (Lily Rabe) is one of the infamous serial killers who Mr. March invited to the annual Devil's Night soirée. She initially flirts with John at the bar, mistaking her for somebody in an Aileen Wuornos costume. When going to John's room, she knocks John unconscious and duct tapes him to a chair so she can kill him, similar to the fashion in which she killed her other victims. However, John breaks free and handcuffs her to the sink. She eventually escapes and apologizes to John that night and continues to flirt with him at Devil's Night.
• John Wayne Gacy (John Carroll Lynch) is one of the infamous serial killers who Mr. March invited to the annual Devil's Night soirée. He annoys James with his nonchalant attitude towards being caught.
• Jeffrey Dahmer (Seth Gabel) is one of the infamous serial killers who Mr. March invited to the annual Devil's Night soirée. After being subject to mockery for being gay by the rest of the table, James gives him a younger man, who is put into a zombie-like trance, similar to what he did to his victims.
• Richard Ramirez (Anthony Ruivivar) is one of the infamous serial killers who Mr. March invited to the annual Devil's Night soirée. Liz gives him an occupied room to break into and kill the Arizona tourists who reside in that room. He kills the husband and chases the wife down the hall, who is killed by him with the help of Mr. March.
• Craig (Nico Evers-Swindell) is a wealthy business man who Sally picks up off of the street to give to Mr. March, so he can please his dinner guests with the joy of stabbing him to death.
• Justin (Darren Criss) is a Silver Lake hipster who seeks refuge in the hotel from pesky trick-or-treaters. Beginning on arrival, Justin and his girlfriend begin making outrageous demands of Iris, including a hotel room at a discount and luxurious foods that Iris is unable to produce, such as a plate of artisanal cheeses, a full-bodied red wine, an organic, non-GMO, grilled romaine, and pâté. When Iris attempts to explain to that she is unable to fulfill his demands, he angrily scolds her and demands their food. After mocking her and insulting the food, Iris kills him in a fit of rage. His body along with his girlfriend's are thrown down the cadaver chute by Iris and Liz Taylor. His ghost is later seen again in the hotel banging on a door demanding for kale.
• Babe (Jessica Lu) is a Silver Lake hipster who, along with her boyfriend Justin, seeks refuge in the hotel from pesky trick-or-treaters. After making several pesky demands in a rude manner to Iris, and complains about the food in front of her, Iris kills her in a fit of rage. Her body along with Justin's are thrown down the cadaver chute by Iris and Liz Taylor.
• Lieutenant (Robert Knepper) is the commander and chief of John's department. In "Room Service", he fires John because of his recent multiple psychotic breaks.
• Mrs. Pritchard (Kristen Ariza) is Max Ellison's teacher who later dies at the hands of Max who feasts of off her blood.
• Nurse Leena (Mouzam Makkar) is the school nurse who takes action to save the school from killing rampage, but is later falls victim to Max and his classmates.
• Charles Montgomery (Matt Ross) is the drug addicted abortionist who lived in the Murder House prior to 1926, and onward, resides as a ghost. Elizabeth turns to him to abort a baby that was fully developed after three weeks. The abortion fails and the baby survives, killing his nurse.
• Mr. Wu (Charles Melton) is the guest of the hotel who is killed in his room by Vendela and Agnetha.
• Bartholomew is Elizabeth's only biological son. He was fully developed at three weeks, and worried about what her partner would think, Elizabeth attempted to have an abortion at the Montgomery Mansion by Charles Montgomery. However, he survived the abortion and killed the nurse. He was born infected in 1926, and naturally craved blood. He attacks anyone in sight with the exception of people he shows affection to, such as Elizabeth and Alex. He resides locked in Room 33 in an effort to keep the residents of the hotel safe.
• Dr. Kaplan (David Barrera) is the doctor administering John's psychiatric tests.
• Rudolph Valentino (Finn Wittrock) is the famous silent movie star who was involved in a secret polygamous relationship with Elizabeth and his ex-wife Natacha Rambova, who he divorced as a publicity stunt. He supposedly dies in 1925, but in reality, he met F. W. Murnau, who convinced him to leave his current life so he may pursue eternal youth. Murnau infects him with the blood virus, who he later gives Natacha and Elizabeth when he returns to his grave to meet a mourning Elizabeth. He is kidnapped and enclosed in a hallway with no rooms by James after becoming jealous that Elizabeth was affectionate toward him. Will Drake accidentally releases him and Natacha from the hallway, where they kill the construction workers, Marcy, and several guests of the hotel, and then leave. Rudolph and Elizabeth reunite in "She Wants Revenge" where Elizabeth promises they will live together forever again now that she has acquired the hotel and Will Drake's fortune. An angry Donovan confronts Rudolph and shoots him several times, mangling his face.
• Natacha Rambova (Alexandra Daddario) is the wife of Rudolph Valentino. She had divorced Rudolph in a publicity stunt. She was originally broken up about his death, but found out about his second life prior to Elizabeth finding out. She was infected with the same virus and resumed her polygamous relationship with Rudolph and Elizabeth. James March, in a fit of jealousy encloses them in a hallway with no rooms. Will Drake releases them when he opens up the hallway for renovation. They kill the construction workers, Marcy, and several hotel guests before leaving the hotel. After being reunited with Elizabeth, it is revealed that Elizabeth only loved her because Rudolph did, but now that their relationship has soured, Rudolph and Elizabeth plan to leave her. She blames Elizabeth for locking her away in the hallway, not knowing that it was James. The two get into an argument when Natacha attempts to stab Elizabeth, but Elizabeth shoots and kills her.
• F. W. Murnau (Henrik Rutgersson) is the director of the vampire film Nosferatu that Elizabeth and Donovan watched in "Checking In". Originally, he said nothing, and just stared at Rudolph at several different stop along his tour. When Rudolph would blink, he would disappear. One night, he wakes Rudolph up and tells him that movies with sound are beginning to bloom, and he will soon find himself no longer as famous as he once was. However, he promised that if he were to fake his death, he would promise him eternal life. When Rudolph agrees, he infects him with the blood virus he had gotten when he was researching vampires for his film, saying that not all vampires were as gruesome as he portrayed in his film, that some were beautiful.
• Wren (Jessica Belkin) is one of the Countess' abducted children. She was taken from an alcoholic father who would leave her in the car while he became intoxicated in a bar. After James tells Sally that John must continue working for him as the Ten Commandments Killer, Sally enlists the help of Wren to follow John around in the outside world to keep him safe, since she is unable to leave the hotel. Wren is accused of committing the Commandment Killings by Detective Hahn, because she was present at the crime scenes due to Sally's instructions, and is locked away in solitary. John releases her when she promises to lead him to the killer, but when John says he will kill the Ten Commandments Killer, it contradicts the mission she was on, so she runs out in front of a car and kills herself to protect John from knowing.
• Cassie Royale (Marla Gibbs) is the mother of Ramona Royale who suffers from cancer, which she succumbs to in 1992.
• Mr. Royale (Henry G. Sanders) is the father of Ramona Royale who suffers from Alzheimer's. He refuses to go to the hospital, but his condition worsens after his wife dies. He is killed by intruders in her house, but Ramona revives him by infecting him, causing him to become violent, killing both of the intruders when they break in again. Ramona had hoped his condition would regress, but it remains the same. In order to end his suffering, Ramona drowns him.
• Douglas Pryor (Josh Braaten) is Liz' son who meet at the hotel to make amends. Liz convinces him to start his own company in Boulder and asks Liz to rejoin his life.