10 Most Disturbing American Horror Story Episodes

7. “Unholy Night” – Season 2, Episode 8

American Horror Story Smouldering Children
FX

Episode Eight of American Horror Story Season Two boasts the answer to a perverse question that no child would ever want to ask – what if Santa was a murderer and a rapist? That alone should be all the explanation you need to watch (or rather avoid) this episode.

The opening of Unholy Night introduces Leigh Emerson, a deranged serial killer with a penchant for dressing up like Santa Claus. We witness the depth of his sadism in a flashback which sees him slaughter a young girl’s parents. In the present (pun fully intended), we find Emerson locked in solitary confinement at Briarcliff. When the holidays roll around, a very possessed-by-the-devil Sister Mary Eunice decides to give Emerson a “chance at redemption.” What results is an orderly getting their face sliced open with a rather sharp Christmas ornament.

At the end of the episode, tensions heighten when Emerson locks himself in a room with Sister Jude. Watching the unhinged Santa Claus taunt Jude as though she’s a “present” he’s going to “open” will make you think twice about sitting on Santa’s lap this year. If this Santa Claus is coming to town, “you better watch out.”

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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.