Fans got excited when they heard that Ariana Grande was reuniting with Ryan Murphy for a small role in the upcoming season 13 of American Horror Story, but then it was announced that she’d dropped out due to her tour. Now Murphy, who first worked with Grande in Scream Queens, says the singer’s exit from the show was “really, truly a scheduling conflict” and not part of any desire on her part to withdraw from the public eye.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Murphy says, “I had an idea and I came to her and she, very immediately, said, ‘I’m not sure because I think I’m going on tour.’ I don’t think the tour had been announced, and she had obviously just finished the Wicked movie.”
“So when it came time to do that episode, I called her up and she was like, ‘I don’t know how I’m going to juggle the tour with this.’ And I said, ‘OK, if you can’t, we can push to another season.’ She said, ‘Great.’”
He continued, “You have to be respectful. Who is busier than Ariana Grande? No one. She had told me at the time, ‘I have this album that’s dropping.’ It was really, truly a scheduling conflict. I said, ‘OK, we’ll kick that can down the road.'”
“I love her, and I support her. It was a very big swing, but I might bring that back for another season, per Ariana’s availability. I think the world of her,” he concluded.
And speaking of singers in TV shows, Murphy also tells the publication that he’s “considering [bringing back] Glee.” He explains, “For many, many people now in their 20s, they grew up on that show and it meant something to them. The music meant something. So, let’s kick it around and see what we get.”
