The main title sequence for FX’s new limited series “Feud: Bette and Joan” has been unveiled and it evokes an immediate sense of deja vu for fans of “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” (1962), the iconic film at the center of the conflict. The animated credits depict shots of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford engaged in catfights, a dead rat being served for dinner, and a cigarette that turns ashes into Oscar statues — a wink to the fact that Davis earned an Oscar nomination for her “Baby Jane” performance while Crawford was snubbed. Watch the “Feud” main title sequence above.
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Coming March 5 to FX, writer-director-producer Ryan Murphy (“The People v. O.J. Simpson”) presents a vulnerable look at what really happened during the filming of that psychological thriller and beyond, with Oscar winner Susan Sarandon (“Dead Man Walking” in 1995) playing Davis and two-time champ Jessica Lange (“Tootsie” in 1982, “Blue Sky” in 1994) portraying Crawford. The animation style of the opening credits is an homage to “Vertigo” and “West Side Story,” both of which were created by Saul Bass.
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Joining Sarandon and Lange in the main cast are Alfred Molina as “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?” director Robert Aldrich, Stanley Tucci as studio producer Jack Warner, Judy Davis as gossip columnist Hedda Hopper, Jackie Hoffman as Crawford’s housekeeper Mamacita and Alison Wright as Aldrich’s assistant Pauline. Notable guest stars include Dominic Burgess as Victor Buono, Catherine Zeta Jones as Olivia De Havilland, Sarah Paulson as Geraldine Page, Kathy Bates as Joan Blondell and Kiernan Shipka as Davis’ daughter B.D.
