FX's 'The Shards' launches as a glossy horror-comedy based on Bret Easton Ellis

FX and Hulu roll out The Shards, a new Ryan Murphy creation that translates Bret Easton Ellis’s self-referential novel into a visually sumptuous horror-comedy set in 1981 Los Angeles. The plot follows privileged students at Buckley Academy as they suspect their charismatic classmate, Robert Mallory, of being a serial predator called The Trawler, whose crimes involve abductions, torture and public displays of bodies. Igby Rigney portrays a teenage Bret wrestling with his sexuality and literary ambitions, while Kaia Gerber and Homer Gere embody the alluring yet dangerous social circle.

Supporting performances from Hayes Warner, Graham Campbell and theater veteran Jordan Roth add depth and absurdity, especially in a wildly campy dance-show episode that the reviewer cites as a high point. Though the series dazzles with its aesthetic and dark humor, its attempt to merge murder mystery, musical numbers and coming-of-age drama feels occasionally overreaching, particularly in later episodes that diverge from the source material. Nonetheless, the show’s blend of glamour and gore positions it as a standout entry in Murphy’s catalog and a potential multi-season hit.