American Horror Storyseason 3, Coven, saw the deaths (and resurrections) of many of its main characters, all in unique and gruesome ways. With American Horror Story typically following ghost stories or slasher premises, it’s rare for the favorite characters in any given season to make it out alive. Many of the deceased characters in its seasons will eventually come back, whether as a ghost or, in Coven’s case, resurrected by magic.

Coven follows a modern-day tribe of young witches being taught to control their abilities at a school in New Orleans. Led by witch Cordelia Goode (Sarah Paulson) and under the control of her Supreme witch mother Fiona Goode, the four young magically-inclined students learn to hone their abilities while facing threats from rival witches, human foes, and the consequences of their uninhibited powers. American Horror Story: Coven is typically regarded as a fan-favorite albeit controversial season, being praised for its excellent female-driven performances, particularly that of AHS regular Jessica Lange.

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With warring witches, human witch hunters, and antagonistic frat boys, the supernatural events surrounding American Horror Story’s coven lead to numerous premature deaths. The characters from Coven were largely beloved by fans, with several who had either been killed and/or resurrected in season 3 returning to alter American Horror Story’s timeline in season 8’s Apocalypse. Here’s a breakdown of how every character in Coven met their grave, including the main characters and supporting players.

Fiona Goode

Portrayed by Academy Award and Emmy-winning actress Jessica Lange, Fiona Goode’s popularity as a character was largely due to Lange’s captivating performance. Fiona serves as The Supreme witch in Coven’s modern timeline, having taken over the title after murdering her predecessor while still a student. As the new group of witches arrived and were trained by her daughter Cordelia, Fiona continuously felt her powers slipping away while also weakening from her battle with cancer. After realizing her coven was preparing the test of The Seven Wonders to determine the new Supreme, Fiona returns with the intention of killing the new leader, only to discover it’s Cordelia. Fiona finally dies when succumbing to her illness, only to be trapped in her personal hell with American Horror Story’s Axeman.

Madison Montgomery

Seemingly the strongest witch in the coven, Madison Montgomery (Emma Roberts), is a famous actress who was sent to Cordelia’s school after accidentally murdering her film director with Telekinesis. Madison’s growing powers indicate that she would likely become the next Supreme, which angers Fiona as she could feel her own powers slipping away. Once Madison proves her newfound abilities by setting curtains ablaze, Fiona attempts to keep her position by slitting Madison’s throat and killing her in the house. Madison’s body is eventually discovered using an Ouija board to communicate with the other witches, and Coven’s Misty Day successfully resurrects her. Madison’s return to life is short-lived, as she is murdered again when Kyle (Evan Peters) chokes her to death for refusing to revive Zoe. It’s then revealed 5 seasons later in Apocalypse that Madison was once again resurrected by Michael Langdon. After resetting the timeline, Madison is once more dead and trapped in her personal hell, though Mallory (Billie Lourd) suggests she will soon be revived again.

Zoe Benson

The newest witch in the coven is Zoe Benson (Taissa Farmiga), whose main conflict centers on her relationship with Kyle, whom she helped resurrect from the dead. The zombified Kyle helps Zoe become more confident in her abilities, making her a more apt competitor in the test of The Seven Wonders. Zoe is killed in Coven during the test, making an error during the teleportation section and accidentally landing on the gate’s spikes. Like her colleagues, Zoe is brought back to life by Cordelia and given a seat on the council.

Queenie

Known as a “human voodoo doll,” Queenie is the first of American Horror Story’s new witches to momentarily die. She briefly dies in episode 4 after being attacked by Coven‘s immortal Bastien/The Minotaur, Marie’s former lover who Delphine LaLaurie had tortured, replacing his head with a bull. Proving her powers are still supreme, Fiona Goode resurrects Queenie after she had briefly stopped breathing.

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Nan

Nan (Jamie Brewer) had one of the most tragic deaths in American Horror Story season 3 as it was completely undeserved. A young clairvoyant and student at Cordelia’s academy, Nan’s powers would lead to her demise when leading her to the baby Marie Laveau was preparing to sacrifice to Papa Legba. With Fiona and Marie’s plan being compromised, the two drown Nan in a bathtub and replace her as the “innocent” needed for Papa Legba’s sacrifice.

Marie Laveau

Fiona’s arch-nemesis and leader of the rival witch faction, Marie Laveau (Angela Bassett), is known as the High Priestess of Voodoo Magic. She spends American Horror Story season 3 sparring with either the witch hunters, the descendants of Salem witches, or her centuries-old enemy Delphine LaLaurie, whom she buried alive with eternal life. Marie Laveau faces her demise in Coven’s season finale when Delphine LaLaurie and Queenie dismember her and scatter her body parts, rendering her unable to make repayments to Papa Legba. Due to her breach of contract, Laveau is killed by Papa Legba taking her soul and condemning her to her own personal hell.

Delphine LaLaurie

Coven’s real-life serial killer Delphine LaLaurie is portrayed by horror icon Kathy Bates, bringing the 1800s torturer to the present day after being trapped for eternity by Marie Laveau. Delphine Lalaurie longs for death throughout Coven, and her wish to end her immortality is finally granted once Marie Laveau, who cursed her, finally dies.

Kyle Spencer

Kyle is the first major victim in American Horror Story season 3, having been killed when Madison revengefully crashed the bus he and his fraternity brothers were on. Zoe had fallen in love with Kyle and felt he didn’t deserve to die with the other fraternity members who had tortured Madison, so the two witches decide to retrieve his body and recruit Misty Day to bring him back to life. Kyle then spends the rest of his days as the coven’s butler, taking over the deceased Spalding’s role.

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How Coven’s Supporting Characters Died

Misty Day: Coven‘s Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks-obsessed witch portrayed by Lily Rabe was burned at the stake and murdered by a Pentecostal group in the Louisiana swamps. Misty is resurrected by her own powers, subsequently assisting Coven’s witches in reviving the many murdered characters.

Myrtle Snow: A council member and nemesis of Fiona Goode, who has served more as a mother figure to Cordelia. She was burned at the stake for wrongly being charged with blinding Cordelia but was later resurrected by Misty. Myrtle is burned at the stake again by Cordelia at her own insistence as punishment for murdering her former council colleagues, with Myrtle’s last word being “Balenciaga!”

Spalding: The butler of Miss Robichaux’s Academy who has always been in love with Fiona and cut out his own tongue for her. Spalding dies when Zoe stabs him in the heart after discovering he was an accomplice in Madison’s murder.

Joan Ramsey: A fundamentalist Christian who moves in next door and is extremely protective of her son. She’s first killed when shot by Hank Foxx after his assassination attempt on Nan, only to be revived by Misty Day. Nan then murders her for good when the witch forces her to drink bleach as revenge for killing Luke.

Luke Ramsey: The coven’s new next-door neighbor who forms a relationship with Nan. Luke is killed in the hospital when smothered with a pillow by his mother, Joan.

Hank Foxx: Cordelia’s husband, who is revealed to be a witch hunter. Hank dies when he attacks and murders several American Horror Story witches in Marie Laveau’s salon, being killed when Queenie uses her voodoo powers to shoot herself in the mouth and transfer the injuries to him.

The Axeman: A New Orleans serial killer who is first killed in 1919 when Coven’s witches lure him into the academy and murder him to stop his terror. The Axeman’s spirit is mistakenly brought back to Earth by Zoe, though he is soon killed again when the young witches continuously stab him to death.

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Cecily Pembroke: The old-fashioned Secretary of the Witches’ Council who is murdered by a resurrected Myrtle as revenge for burning her at the stake.

Quentin Fleming: Myrtle’s other council member colleague played by AHS‘s Leslie Jordan, who is murdered by Myrtle as revenge. Myrtle then uses one of his eyes to give sight back to Cordelia.

Alicia Spencer: Kyle’s abusive mother, who he kills after molesting him.

Kyle’s Fraternity Brothers: Many are killed in a bus crash caused by Madison after a few members had drugged and sexually assaulted her.

Kaylee: A young witch who Hank seduces and spends time with at a hotel before shooting and killing her point-blank.

Delphine LaLaurie’s Family: Delphine’s daughters Borquita, Pauline, and Jeanne and Husband Louis were lynched to death in American Horror Story by Marie Laveau’s mob as retaliation for their slavery crimes.

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Jordan Williams
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Jordan Williams is a Movie/TV Feature Senior Staff Writer for Screen Rant. She graduated from the University of Oregon in 2020 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Media Studies.

Jordan is based in Seattle, Washington and enjoys exploring the natural beauty the PNW has to offer. She runs on coffee and classic movies, taking pride in having watched every film on AFI’s 100 Greatest Films list and every Best Picture Oscar winner.

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