The divas are div-ing. Ariana Grande almost brought Chanel #2 back from the dead for American Horror Story, while Madonna and Charli XCX have officially joined forces for a new remix of “Danceteria.” One of these things actually happened, and honestly, we’re still processing the one that didn’t.
Ryan Murphy revealed that Grande was originally supposed to reprise her Scream Queens role in the upcoming 13th season of American Horror Story. The crossover would have brought two of Murphy’s most gloriously chaotic worlds together, but Grande’s Eternal Sunshine Tour had other plans.
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Meanwhile, Madonna and Charli have already delivered their own little pop-cultural fever dream with “Danceteria Afterhours,” a new remix of Madonna’s “Danceteria” from her recent album Confessions II. So yes, while we’re mourning the Chanel #2 cameo we never got, at least there’s a new Madonna and Charli collaboration to keep us occupied.
Murphy revealed the Scream Queens crossover while speaking with The Hollywood Reporter Wednesday night in New York City ahead of the premiere of AHS: 13. Grande was ready to return, but the timing simply didn’t work.
“It was funny because at one point I was going to have the Scream Queens come on to this season, but Ariana was touring and I couldn’t make it work,” Murphy told THR. “But she was like, ‘I still want to do it! I just can’t be on tour.’ So I was like, ‘All right, let me think of it.’”
Ryan Murphy reveals that Ariana Grande’s role in #AHS13 would’ve involved a ‘Scream Queens’ crossover, but she couldn’t make it work with her touring schedule. pic.twitter.com/fEKEx3uocV
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) September 24, 2026
Chanel #2 May Still Have a Future
Grande played Chanel #2 on Scream Queens, the Fox horror-comedy co-created by Murphy, Brad Falchuk and Ian Brennan. She was part of the Kappa Kappa Tau crew alongside Emma Roberts as Chanel #1, Billie Lourd as Chanel #3, Abigail Breslin as Chanel #5 and Lea Michele, with the sorority sisters targeted by a killer known as the Red Devil.
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Of course, Chanel #2 did not exactly have the longest tenure. Grande’s character was killed off during the first season, while Scream Queens itself lasted just two seasons before Fox canceled it.
The fact that Grande couldn’t make the AHS appearance happen doesn’t mean Murphy has closed the door on Scream Queens. Quite the opposite.
10 years since this iconic ariana scene in scream queens pic.twitter.com/CjJKYeGpPm
— ariana feeds (@arianafeeds) September 22, 2025
When asked whether he was considering reviving the series following his recent comments about being open to revisiting Glee, Murphy suggested the idea is still very much alive, even if nothing is officially happening yet.
“Yes, so funny, Emma [Roberts] and I were talking about that yesterday. You know, they want me to do it. I don’t know.”
“Emma really wants to do it. I know Billie wants to do it. Lea wants to do it. Ariana wants to do it and Glen [Powell], my favorite of all time,” he said.
Murphy also reiterated that Grande’s tour was ultimately what stopped the Scream Queens crossover from happening this season.
“I mean, it’s been what, 12 years since Glee went off the air? Sometimes it takes a while,” Murphy added. “But it was the tour which I knew. She warned me in advance that it was gonna be really hard to schedule, and the weekend we had to shoot it, she was touring, but I said, ‘OK, I’ll bump it down the road,’ so I haven’t given up. I love her.”
And Grande isn’t the only one who appears ready to return to the world of Chanel. Lourd, who played Chanel #3, also told THR that she would happily revisit the series.
“Hell yeah! Scream Queens is everything,” she said when asked about the possibility of a revival.
“I wish Scream Queens would come back. It was so much fun. That was the first Ryan thing I ever did. It’d be wild,” she added. “Chanel #3 is everything to me.”
Brennan has also previously expressed interest in revisiting the show, while reflecting on the television landscape that surrounded its cancellation.
“It was really at the end of network [television] and the rise of streaming,” he said. “A network executive could have been forgiven for being like, ‘The ratings keep going down.’ But they would do this all the time. They’d cancel a show that was getting like a one and then replace it with something that got a point seven, and now they would give their eyeteeth for the ratings we were getting then.”
For now, the AHS universe gets the spotlight. The highly anticipated 13th season of American Horror Story premieres Thursday on FX, with franchise favorites including Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters and Angela Bassett returning in the all-star season.
Still, somewhere in the multiverse, Chanel #2 is probably wondering why she wasn’t invited.
Madonna and Charli XCX Have Entered the Chat
On another side of the diva stage, Madonna and Charli XCX have delivered the collaboration nobody needed to beg for twice.
The pair have teamed up for “Danceteria Afterhours,” a new remix of Madonna’s “Danceteria” from her recent album Confessions II. The track arrived Thursday, Sept. 24, through Warner Records, following Madonna’s announcement earlier that week.
The original “Danceteria” was co-produced by Madonna, Andrew Watt, Cirkut and Stuart Price.
Madonna had already been teasing the collaboration on Instagram, sharing a snippet of the song featuring the two stars dancing in a white studio space.
“You wanna talk about Madonna and Charli?” they sing over the clip. “Everyone here is a work of art.”
“Let’s take it to the East side baby……,” Madonna captioned the teaser, alongside the Sept. 24 release date.
“Danceteria Afterhours” is described as “a celebration of the fearless beginnings and influences that shaped each artist’s singular paths,” according to a press release.
The pairing had been brewing in the pop-culture imagination for months. Speculation about a collaboration intensified after Madonna and Charli were seated next to each other at the Saint Laurent menswear spring/summer 2027 fashion show in late June.
Before that, fans had already been wondering about the relationship between the two stars after Madonna appeared to respond to Charli’s declaration that “the dance floor is dead” on her “Rock Music” single.
“If your dance floor feels dead. Maybe you’re playing the wrong music,” Madonna cryptically posted on Instagram.
Whatever tension fans thought they spotted clearly didn’t stop the collaboration. Charli has long been vocal about her admiration for Madonna, including while promoting The Moment earlier this year.
“I love Truth or Dare, Madonna. Great choreo in that, also she’s just the one,” she said.
The Afterhours Era Continues
“Danceteria Afterhours” also follows Madonna’s recent collaborations with Kylie Minogue: “Love Sensation (Afterhours Radio Edit)” and “Love Sensation (Afterhours Mix),” two new versions of “Love Sensation” from Madonna’s July album Confessions II.
The collaboration comes after “Love Sensation” reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Dance Airplay chart in July, adding to the album’s success after it debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200.
So, between a potential Scream Queens revival and Madonna joining forces with Charli XCX, the divas are clearly keeping busy.
And honestly, if pop culture has taught us anything, there is always room for one more dramatic crossover, one more remix and at least three more fabulous women in the room.
Source: Hollywood Reporter and Billboard