Ryan Murphy and FX have clearly struck gold together, with standout series like American Horror Story, Grotesquerie, American Crime Story, Pose, Feud and American Sports Story all premiering or still currently airing on the network. Now, the horror mastermind has set his next horror project at FX. It's titled The Shards, and some book lovers might already be familiar with the show's title.
The Shards is a series adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's 2023 horror novel of the same name. Most people know Ellis from his popular black comedy horror novel American Psycho, which was later turned into a feature film starring Christian Bale. Several of his other books have also been made into films like Less than Zero, The Rules of Attraction and The Informers. The Shards marks his fifth novel to be adapted into another medium, but instead of a movie, this time it's being developed as a television series.
According to Deadline, FX and Murphy are in the early stages of developing the series. Max Winkler, a director who also frequently works with Murphy, has signed on to direct. He recently helmed part of the upcoming third season of Netflix's Monster series and will direct the pilot for Murphy’s other new FX show, American Love Story. However, it's unknown at the time who will be penning the scripts. Additionally, 20th Television and Ryan Murphy Television will produce. Executive producers include Murphy, Ellis, Winkler, Nick Hall, Kathleen McCaffrey, and Brian Young.
Back in February 2025, there were talks of Murphy potentially producing a TV series adaptation of Ellis’s 2023 book. Now that the project is officially set at FX, we have that confirmation. The Shards is described as a dark, coming-of-age story with semi-autobiographical elements drawn from Ellis’s own life.
The story takes place in 1981 Los Angeles, and centers on a 17-year-old version of Ellis during his senior year at the prestigious Buckley prep school. However, when a mysterious new student named Robert Mallory arrives at the school, he finds his world thrown into chaos. Robert has a disturbing presence, and Ellis becomes increasingly obsessed with the idea that he may somehow be connected to a string of brutal murders committed by a local serial killer known as The Trawler.
The only actor who has been attached to this project so far is Kaia Gerber. Like Winkler, this isn't her first time collaborating with Murphy. She had roles in both American Horror Story: Double Feature and American Horror Stories. Her current role in The Shards is undisclosed at the moment. Once these juicy deets are revealed, we'll let you know right away.
This is all we know about this upcoming FX series for now. As new information comes out, we'll come back and share everything. Besides The Shards, Monster season 3 and American Love Story, Murphy also has these upcoming shows in the works 9-1-1: Nashville, All's Fair and The Beauty.