Travis Kelce is making his acting debut in Grotesquerie, the newest horror series from American Horror Story co-creator Ryan Murphy.
Grotesquerie, the first two episodes of which are out now on Disney+ in the UK, follows Detective Lois Tryon (Niecy Nash-Betts) as she works alongside nun Sister Megan (Micaela Diamond) to investigate a series of shocking crimes impacting them and their community. Kelce has not yet appeared in the show but it is his involvement in it that has created the most buzz around the show.
The NFL player —who is also known for dating Taylor Swift— has never acted before the new FX series but that didn’t stop Murphy from hiring him.
Murphy has a precedent for casting non-actors in his shows, giving reality star Kim Kardashian and model Kaia Gerber their acting debuts in American Horror Story and its sister show American Horror Stories, respectively. It isn’t surprising, then, that he would choose to hire another pop culture figure who has never acted before in his show.
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The casting decision came as a surprise even to Murphy when he met Kelce for the first time, though, he revealed to Entertainment Tonight: “It was very unexpected. I didn’t know Travis and I thought we were having a general meeting, but he was so passionate about wanting to try it, and I always have a theory that ‘a star is a star is a star.’ He’s a big star in every arena.
“I was just moved by it and his ambition and he’s guy who wants to try new things. I said, ‘Well, I don’t know if I have anything now.’ Then, I thought about it and I did and I called him back and I pitched him, and expanded it and wrote it for him.”
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The TV show creator added that he found Kelce had great discipline on set for his as-yet-unrevealed role, adding: “He was a little nervous at first, but we worked together and had a ball. He’s just the most delightful person.”
This was a sentiment shared by Niecy Nash-Betts, who told People that Kelce was “very open” during filming: “He was very open on if there was a note given or a suggestion given. So amenable. ‘Tell me what I don’t know. Tell me what your thought is on this.’ I love that he didn’t come in trying to act like, ‘I know everything and I know it all.'”
Kelce joins a long line of non-actors to make their acting debut in a Ryan Murphy production, the question is whether he will continue to pursue it in the future.
Grotesquerie will air new episodes every Thursday on Disney+.
