American Horror Story has not shied away from incorporating real life murderers into its fictional storylines, whether that's with characters inspired by the criminals or by incorporating renditions of the killers into the seasons. In American Horror Story: Asylum, the series presented one of its most horrific villains, and his inspiration was equally frightening.
Asylum primarily followed reporter Lana Winters after she was institutionalized at Briarcliff Manor, where she became the subject of Dr. Oliver Thredson's abusive treatments and fascination. In actuality, Thredson was a serial killer and rapist known as Bloody Face, and his inspiration was clearly pulled from a killer who's been the muse to several notable fictional villains.
Who Is Ed Gein, the Inspiration For AHS, Psycho and More?
From Norman Bates, to Buffalo Bill, to Leatherface, Ed Gein inspired a number of characters. As reported in Behind the Horror: True Stories That Inspired Horror Movies by Dr. Lee Mellor, Gein was the victim of a mother who would socially isolate him, push her religious beliefs denouncing pleasure in any form and physically abuse him if he acted on any vices. After the death of his brother, an adult Gein would be the care person for his mother, further developing an unhealthy dynamic until her death.
Gein would later be behind the kidnapping and death of Bernice Worden, who was found in Gein's home in a graphic state, but her body was only the beginning of the horrors the cops would find. As they inspected the household, they came across bowls, chairs, lamps and other items made of human skin and bone. Gein also made a "woman suit" and a series of masks out of human remains.
Along with this, authorities discovered a second victim, Mary Hogan. While Gein claimed he did not remember the details about the murders, he admitted to robbing the graves of older women to make the haunting items found in his home. After his trial, Judge Robert H. Gollmar found Gein not guilty by reason of insanity, sending him back to Central State Hospital.
How Did Ed Gein Inspire Bloody Face?
Like Gein, Thredson's relationship to his mother, or lack thereof, deeply influenced him. Gein's motherly issues are theorized to be the cause of his macabre inclinations, and during his interviews with Dr. E. F. Schubert, Gein admitted to disrespecting graves because he wanted to remember his mom; however, in the words of Dr. R. Warmington, "the motivation [for murder] is elusive and uncertain."
Meanwhile the fictional Thredson owned up to how his mother's abandonment impacted his murderous tendencies, as he actively looked for a replacement to her. Those who did not fit the bill were killed and skinned. No one had met his expectation until Winters, who remarkably survived his horrific actions against her.
The Bloody Face mask also connected back to Gein. Thredson made the mask, as well as several household items, out of the skin of his victims. This was similar to what Gein did to make his horrific accessories and objects; however, there were some difference. Along with using the remains of his victims, Gein used the remains of the dead he dug up, but Bloody Face was no grave robber.
What was found at the Gein home was disturbing on multiple levels, so it's unsurprising that Bloody Face, who's yet another character pulling inspiration from him, was one of the AHS' most gruesome killers to date; however, like Gein, his reign of terror ended but in a different way. Winters turned over a recording of Thredson's confession, and she met him at his house, altering him that the police were on the way. Thredson believed he would be institutionalized due to insanity instead of sent to prison, much like Gein. Winters assured this wouldn't happen, shooting him dead and ending the life of the first Bloody Face.