While Hotel was not viewed in as such high regard as its predecessors, it still received positive reviews for its production design, cinematography and performances, with particular praise going to Paulson, Peters, O’hare, Bassett, Bates and Lady Gaga.

"[Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates, Matt Bomer, Sarah Paulson, and Evan Peters] are bad boys and girls this time.

"[20][22] Co-creator Brad Falchuk explained that like the first and second season of the series, Hotel would explore the "trapped" horror trope, though the actions would not be limited to just within the premises.

[23] Named as Hotel Cortez, the titular structure was built by James March in 1930, who was created as a rich and charming but deeply psychotic character.

The season features two tormentors, The Ten Commandments Killer, who is inspired by biblical teachings, and The Addiction Demon, who wields a drill bit dildo.

[24] The Halloween episode, "Devil's Night", features a dinner with "the biggest serial killers of all time", including Wuornos and John Wayne Gacy.

While no particular hotel served as inspiration, production designer Mark Worthington was influenced by Timothy Pflueger and William Van Alen when selecting patterns and schemes, stating, "Tonally, I thought Art Deco would make sense for the horror genre because it can be dark and spiky and odd and the composition is strange.

The hotel consists of complicated structures housing March's murderous fantasies with dead ends, secret rooms and includes plot lines corresponding to it.

Worthington and his team had a hand in creating even the smallest details, such as hotel symbols for the light fixtures, bar coasters, and a venus flytrap column carving reflecting the nature of Gaga's character.

[31][38] Chloë Sevigny, who was a recurring special guest in Asylum, returned to the series for Hotel, playing the wife of Wes Bentley's character, a detective.

[51] In August 2015, Murphy revealed that Mädchen Amick joined the season as a "mother of a boy who becomes ill", and shares screen time with Alex Lowe (Sevigny).

Later in the month, Darren Criss was announced to guest star as a hipster that has conflicts with Iris (Bates),[52] while Mare Winningham joined as the laundress of the Cortez, who works closely with Mr. March, in the 1920s.

[55] Principal photography for the season began on July 14, 2015, in Los Angeles, California, marking a return to where the series shot its first two cycles (Murder House and Asylum).

[58] Murphy announced at the TCA Summer Press Tour in August 2015 that he would be directing the season's Halloween episode, "Devil's Night", marking the first time in series history that he will helm more than the premiere.

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Murphy spoke about Gaga's entrance scene, confirming it to be about six minutes long and describing it as "like a silent movie with no dialogue, and lots of blood and nudity".

Costume designer Lou Eyrich created the custom gloves in the mold of armor, deriving inspiration from artist Daphne Guinness; "We wanted it to look both rock-n-roll but old at the same time.

Media reported that the filming involved a party scene with Gaga walking through the installation while singer Dinah Washington's "Coquette" played in the background.

[61][62] Entertainment Weekly's Tim Stack spent three days on set, where he witnessed the filming of a foursome/murder scene, involving Gaga and Bomer's characters.

She showed up and she was wearing diamond pasties, a Band-Aid on her hoo-ha, heels, and a black veil that Alexander McQueen made for her on the day before his death.

[27][64] Other locations include the lower level of the Los Angeles Theatre at 615 South Broadway, The Majestic Downtown at 650 South Spring Street acting as John Lowe's office, the Loews Hollywood Hotel at 1755 Highland Avenue filming The Ten Commandments Killer murder scene, and Hollywood Forever Cemetery, where scenes with Gaga and Bomer were shot.

[68] The actor explained that for his part, he had to shave his body including his head, and wear eye make-up, since the character was inspired by actress Elizabeth Taylor's films like BUtterfield 8 (1960) and Cleopatra (1963).

[73] Later that month, Entertainment Weekly exclusively unveiled two teaser trailers of the season, entitled "Beauty Rest" and "Do Not Disturb", set to singer Heidi Feek's cover of Elvis Presley's 1956 single, "Heartbreak Hotel".

[79] Few days later, two more trailers were released, one showed the hand of an addict, with a keyhole in place of the needle point, while the other, titled "Above & Below", portrays Gaga as The Countess, with several psychedelic intercuts inside a hotel, featuring Rammstein's "Du hast".

[80][81] American retail chain Hot Topic announced on their Instagram account that starting September 28, 2015, they will launch a clothing and apparel line based on Hotel, that will be sold in-store and online.

The site's consensus reads, "Favoring garish style over effective storytelling, the fifth American Horror Story strands a talented cast at Ryan Murphy's Hotel.

[87] Dan Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter gave a positive review, writing, "Early on, Hotel hasn't hooked me with its storytelling, but it's always fun to see what the series does with its repertory acting company and with new additions.

"[88] Amber Dowling of TheWrap also gave a positive review, saying, "It's a visual, visceral romp into what is being set up to be another haphazard foray into the world of horror, as imagined by Murphy and his writing counterpart Brad Falchuk.

"[90] On the other hand, Matt Zoller Seitz of New York Magazine found the season "confusing, tedious, annoyingly precious, and often ostentatiously brutal", but also praised it for being "darkly beautiful, deeply weird, and (sometimes) exhilarating.

"[91] Although Scott D. Pierce from The Salt Lake Tribune praised the production design and the cinematography, he said "the storytelling is derivative; the scares are non-existent; and it's all about style without much substance.

"[95] David Weiland of San Francisco Chronicle said Gaga "makes an enormous visual impact, but the minute she opens her mouth to deliver a line, it's obvious that acting just isn't one of her many talents.