Episode 5 premiered on Hulu. Ryan Murphy wrote and directed this significant departure from Bret Easton Ellis's source novel, centered on a murder during a live dance competition. Viewers have split over the campy tone, according to Decider.
In 'Murder on the Dancefloor,' Debbie competes on Dance Off against rival Cha Cha Rodriguez for 'Groover of the Week.' Rodriguez is engaged in an affair with the show's married host, Tony Cruz, and has recently told him she is pregnant, expecting him to divorce his wife and marry her. By episode's end, Rodriguez is found murdered in the ladies' room. It remains unclear whether she was killed by the show's suspected serial killer or another suspect.
According to executive producer Brad Simpson, Murphy conceived the episode after reflecting on nostalgia for dance-competition programming from the 1970s and 1980s. He posed a question to the writer's room: 'What if our team went on that show together?' Eight weeks of complex ensemble shooting were needed while the team explored both the backstage 'dirtiness' and the underlying 'terror.'
Jordan Roth, a seven-time Tony Award winner, told Decider the episode functions as 'a movie musical.' Roth's character Steven becomes more prominent in this installment, manipulating producers and casting votes while Debbie's father is distracted elsewhere. Episodes 6 and 7 return on August 26, titled 'Homecoming Part 1' and 'Homecoming Part 2.'