'American Horror Story: Apocalypse': Will Season 9 Be a Sequel Season?

With only two episodes left of American Horror Story: Apocalypse fans of the FX series are heading into the conclusion with more questions than answers. After the first three episodes of the horror anthology series sent viewers to Outpost 3 and the end of the world thanks to nuclear bombs, it then shifted gears and has spent the last five episodes exploring the years leading up to the end in a series of extended flashbacks shedding light on the brewing battle between Michael (Cody Fern) and Cordelia Goode (Sarah Paulson). With so much left to resolve some have started to wonder if Apocalypse will truly resolve -- or if Season 9 will serve as a sequel.

The idea of a sequel season or even a continued season would be a first for the Ryan Murphy-created series. Thus far, every season of American Horror Story has been self-contained in terms of story, though it's slowly unfolded across the duration of the show that each season is connected. Apocalypse in particular has fleshed that out a great deal, especially with the episode "Return to Murder House" taking things back to where it all began -- literally. However, most seasons have started to lean towards a finale by now while even the most recent episode of Apocalypse has only shown Michael fully leaning into his role as the antichrist while the upcoming "Fire and Reign" hints at introducing us to the concept of The Cooperative, meaning there is still a ton of ground to cover before the end.

So, could Season 9 be a continuation or sequel? Some fans seem to think so, pointing to the fact that FX renewed the series for Seasons 8 and 9 at the same time. The argument there is that, by being picked up together it could be proof that Murphy developed the story for Apocalypse to have multiple chapters. There's also the matter of some of the characters from Outpost 3 we haven't seen much more of since the witches arrived. Timothy (Kyle Allen) and Emily (Ashley Santos) both appeared to be fairly significant characters when we first met them, their reason being at Outpost 3 attributed to their unique genetics. Now that we know Cordelia was working on things behind the scenes in some capacity, surely Timothy and Emily's story factors in somehow.

However, as TV Guide points out, having a sequel or continued season would be a huge departure for American Horror Story and would, in effect, change it from an anthology series to one with a more standard format. There's also no indication that Murphy plans to do anything but wrap up the Apocalypse story with the remaining two episodes and there appears to be some clues, via the title of the finale, that things may be wrapped up quickly by design. The season finale is entitled "Apocalypse Then", leading many to think that the events of Apocalypse will be undone or time itself will be reversed, possibly due to Mallory's (Billie Lourd) immense power.

What is clear is that however Apocalypse closes its season, that end is near -- and it will be interesting to see how the conclusion impacts the entire timeline of the American Horror Story world.

Do you think Apocalypse will wrap up its story in two more episodes or do you think Season 9 might be a sequel? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

American Horror Story: Apocalypse airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET on FX.