15 Best American Horror Story Cast Members

During her stint on American Horror Story, two-time Oscar winner Jessica Lange won a Golden Globe, two Emmys, and endless praise from critics and fans alike. Without her, perhaps Murder House wouldn't have birthed such a daring and beloved show.

As Constance Langdon, Lange was the mysterious, seemingly cruel and heartbroken mother of Tate (Evan Peters) and Adelaide (Jamie Brewer). This role began Lange's trend of portraying tough, flawed and generally good women tainted by the horrific world around them.

In Asylum, she played the vicious Sister Jude with coldness and complexity, and despite being seen as the season's main antagonist used her superior acting chops to make her entirely sympathetic by season's end. In Coven, she played witch Fiona Goode as a powerful sorcerer unable to come to terms with her waning powers.

And as Elsa Mars, well, she was one hell of a singer.

Jessica Lange is massively responsible for the show's popularity, and looking at the wide range of complex characters she's had to play, it's easy to see why we miss her in the later seasons so much.