10 Most Disturbing American Horror Story Episodes

9. “Piggy Piggy” – Season 1, Episode 6

American Horror Story Smouldering Children
FX

Those familiar with the sublime first season of American Horror Story would recognize this episode and understand its place on this list immediately. Episode six, dubbed ‘Piggy piggy’, features a hard-hitting flashback which reveals fan-favourite character Tate Langdon as the perpetrator of a school shooting.

Before we delve into that, it would be remiss to not mention the supplementing storyline of this episode, and that for which it is named. One of Ben’s new patients (played perfectly by Modern Family’s Eric Stonestreet) tells the urban legend of the ‘Piggyman’. Part-Candyman, part-Saw, this fictional legend revolves around a ghost-butcher who dons a pig mask and kills his victims when they say his name in a bathroom mirror. Creepy stuff.

Of course, the real horror comes from our journey into Tate’s past. To put it lightly, this scene is hard to watch, largely due to the fact that what happens is already revealed to us in the previous episode. We are forced to watch a group of innocent high-schoolers pray for their lives, knowing very well that they are about to be murdered. The real punch to the gut, however, lies in the revelation that the charismatic young character of Tate could have done this. Consequently, he soon pays with his life, when a SWAT team swarms his house and shoots him dead.

Contributor
Contributor

Dan is a writer and actor originally from South Australia who now lives in a constant state of anxiety... and Los Angeles. Whether writing about movies, watching movies, or binging the Great British Bake-off, Dan approaches any endeavour with a steely resolve which is rivalled only by his ability to lie about his strengths. For professional inquiries, call Melissa Cropley - Dan's mum; she wishes he would call more often and you'd really be doing him a favour.