Serie - FX The Beauty : when beauty becomes a dangerous obsession and television turns social anxiety into a gripping international thriller

By Mulder, 05 january 2026

FX The Beauty is shaping up to be one of the most daring and provocative series of 2026, and what makes it instantly fascinating is how it blends thrilling investigation, science-fiction body horror, and sharp social commentary into something that feels both spectacular and deeply unsettling. Created by Ryan Murphy and Matt Hodgson, produced by Ryan Murphy Productions and 20th Television, this ambitious eleven-episode series adapts the acclaimed Image Comics creation by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley, and already the tone feels like a fearless exploration of the price humanity is willing to pay to achieve perfection. Premiering on FX and FX on Hulu in the United States on January 21, 2026, and arriving internationally on Disney+ (including France on January 22, 2026, with the first three episodes available immediately before switching to weekly releases), the series fits perfectly into Ryan Murphy’s tradition of tackling cultural obsessions while adding a grander science-fiction dimension reminiscent of his fascination with beauty, surgery, and transformation previously seen in Nip/Tuck. According to what has already been confirmed, the show fully embraces the disturbing idea of a sexually transmitted treatment called “The Beauty,” capable of transforming people into impossibly perfect physical beings, only to reveal horrific, lethal consequences hiding underneath the glamorous surface.

At the heart of FX The Beauty are two FBI agents thrown into a case that quickly spirals beyond anything rationally controllable, led by Evan Peters as Cooper Madsen and Rebecca Hall as Jordan Bennett, who are sent to Paris to investigate a chilling wave of mysterious deaths among international models. This alone carries a strong narrative hook: turning fashion capitals like Paris, Venice, Rome, and New York into crime scenes where beauty itself becomes a weapon. As the cases multiply and public panic swells, their investigation leads them to “The Corporation,” a multi-billion-dollar empire ruled by reclusive tech billionaire Ashton Kutcher, who has secretly engineered this “miracle treatment” and is ready to protect his power at any cost. And when someone like that has resources, fear, and no limits, you can imagine that violence follows—and it does, through his terrifying enforcer “The Assassin,” portrayed by Anthony Ramos, whose presence promises to add brutal tension and moral chaos to the show’s core. Meanwhile, Jeremy Pope plays Jeremy, a lost outsider caught in the unfolding disaster, desperately searching for meaning while the world collapses under the pressure of desire, fear, and silently accepted vanity.

What strengthens the credibility and ambition of FX The Beauty is its truly impressive cast and creative team, mixing experienced stars, unexpected casting choices, and culturally relevant figures. Alongside Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope, Ashton Kutcher, and Rebecca Hall, the series features Isabella Rossellini in a recurring role, as well as Amelia Gray Hamlin, Ari Graynor, Bella Hadid (portraying Ruby), Ben Platt, Billy Eichner, Jaquel Spivey, Jessica Alexander, Jon Jon Briones, John Carroll Lynch, Julie Halston, Lux Pascal, Meghan Trainor, Nicola Peltz Beckham, Peter Gallagher, Vincent D'Onofrio, Rob Yang, and Sky Kawai in guest or supporting appearances. This dazzling lineup reinforces how international, glamorous, and narratively layered the series intends to be, embracing the world of fashion, politics, technology, and celebrity culture while rooting it in human fear and moral conflict. Behind the camera, Mac Quayle, a frequent collaborator of Ryan Murphy, composed the score, ensuring a sonic identity capable of amplifying dread, seduction, and tragedy. Production began in December 2024 in New York City, with confirmed additional filming in Pearl River, New York, at the beginning of 2025, underlining how carefully built and long-term this project has been.

Beyond spectacle, FX The Beauty carries a strong thematic charge. Ryan Murphy himself has described the show as a direct commentary on modern transformation culture, often linked today to instant solutions, medically assisted perfection, and what many have called “Ozempic culture.” The series does not simply present beauty as vanity; it portrays it as a dangerous social desire woven into power systems, corporate greed, political manipulation, and human insecurity. The original comic already explored corruption, fear, and death hidden behind perfection, and now the series expands that vision to a global scale. There is also something tragically ironic, and disturbingly believable, in the idea that humanity could accept lethal consequences in exchange for admiration, validation, or social advantage. In that sense, the show is not only a thriller but also a mirror held up to the world one that feels alarmingly close to reality.

With executive producers including Ryan Murphy, Matt Hodgson, Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope, Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, Jeremy Haun, Scott Robertson, Nissa Diederich, and Eric Gitter, FX The Beauty is clearly treated as a major television event, one that combines entertainment value with cultural relevance. Eleven episodes, massive artistic ambition, real-world thematic resonance, global settings, and a prestigious cast—everything points toward a series capable of igniting discussion, fascination, and discomfort. Whether viewers approach it for its thriller intensity, its sci-fi elements, its glamorous tragedy, or its sharp critique of obsession and superficiality, this looks like a show that intends not only to entertain but to make audiences question the price of perfection in a world already obsessed with appearances.

Synopsis :
A sexually transmitted disease makes people beautiful... before killing its hosts after a certain amount of time. While the government may be behind the infection, inspectors Drew Foster and Kara Vaughn try to make sense of it all, navigating corrupt politicians, vengeful federal agents, and a terrifying mercenary who wants their heads. Based on the horror comic by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley.

The Beauty
Created by Ryan Murphy, Matt Hodgson
Based on The Beauty by Jeremy Haun, Jason A. Hurley
Starring Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope, Ashton Kutcher, Rebecca Hall, Isabella Rossellini , Amelia Gray Hamlin, Ari Graynor, Bella Hadid as Ruby, Ben Platt, Billy Eichner, Jaquel Spivey, Jessica Alexande, Jon Jon Briones, John Carroll Lynch, Julie Halston, Lux Pascal, Meghan Trainor, Nicola Peltz Beckham, Peter Gallagher, Vincent D'Onofrio, Rob Yang, Sky Kawai
Music by Mac Quayle
Executive producers : Ryan Murphy, Matt Hodgson, Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope, Alexis Martin Woodall, Eric Kovtun, Jeremy Haun, Scott Robertson, Nissa Diederich, Eric Gitter
Production companies : Ryan Murphy Productions, 20th Television Original release
Network : FX, FX on Hulu (United States), Disney+ (France)
Releasing date : January 21, 2026 (United States), January 22, 2026 (France)