Ryan Murphy’s The Beauty will make a crucial narrative change in the upcoming horror series- here’s everything we know

FX welcomes a new series, The Beauty, a disturbing horror thriller with a global investigative theme and a clearly defined narrative from its opening episode.

With a supermodel’s death shrouded in mystery and a virus that makes the flawless imperfect, The Beauty sets itself up as a high-concept horror thriller with explicit stakes from the very first episode.

The Beauty is a new series on FX that is based on the Image Comics title created by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley. The series, which is under Ryan Murphy's Disney deal, takes the comic's provocative concept and translates it into a large-scale, globe-spanning television narrative.

Although the show’s structure was initially unclear, FX has now announced an official synopsis that gives detailed information about the characters, the plot, and the locations, confirming that The Beauty will progress as a procedural horror thriller centered on investigation.

What The Beauty is about

The Beauty narrates the tale of a virus that is s*xually transmitted and termed as The Beauty, which transforms those infected into physically flawless individuals, free of scars, wrinkles, or visible imperfections. Nonetheless, it’s a deadly and brutal disease that threatens global collapse.

As per FX’s official plot synopsis, the tale starts with the event of the sudden death of supermodels in Paris under mysterious circumstances, which sets the ground for an international investigation. The higher-ups find the virus, The Beauty, whose promise of totality hides a reality that's way more dangerous, when the number of deaths increases.

Such a storyline is quite loyal to the Image Comics series, yet it broadens the canvas for serialized TV.

Official plot and investigative framework

In contrast to prior approximations that presented the narrative method as one of speculation, FX has made it clear that The Beauty is constructed around the core of a procedural investigative format.

The plot proceeds with the FBI Agents Cooper Madsen and Jordan Bennett tasked with investigating the model deaths and tracing the origins of The Beauty. Their quest takes them to various places around the world, such as Paris, Venice, Rome, and New York, and over the course of the investigation, they unearth a huge conspiracy that is related to power, money, and control.

With the unraveling of the case, the investigators come up against an enigmatic corporate power that has turned the virus into a tool of influence and exploitation.

Confirmed characters and cast

FX has made the main actors' character information public, thus clearing the roles of any doubt:

Evan Peters as Cooper Madsen, an FBI agent who is in charge of the investigation.

Rebecca Hall as Jordan Bennett, Madsen’s partner in the case.

Ashton Kutcher as The Corporation, a tech tycoon with a strong connection to the virus.

Anthony Ramos as The Assassin, a hitman assigned to guard the secret.

Jeremy Pope as Jeremy, a bystander whose role is connected to the virus’s spread.

Bella Hadid, in a minor role, is associated with the fashion and modeling sector, which is the central point of the virus outbreak.

Creative team and production details

Ryan Murphy is the executive producer of The Beauty, while Matthew Hodgson has been confirmed as a writer and executive producer. Ryan Murphy has also recruited Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, and Jeremy Pope, among others, as executive producers.

Jeremy Haun, one of the writers of the original comic, is part of the adaptation process, while Jason A. Hurley is given the credit of a consultant for the purpose of being faithful to the source material.

FX has adopted The Beauty as a serialized drama, which was a position against anthology or limited series.

Guest stars and expanded cast

Among the main team, FX has revealed an impressive list of guest stars that will appear in the show, including:

Isabella Rossellini
Vincent D’Onofrio
Ben Platt
James Wolk
Nico Greetham
Griffin Dunne
Zahn McClarnon

These appearances are not only showcasing the series’ great variety, but also its character-driven plot.

Release date and episode structure

FX has scheduled January 21, 2026, as the day when The Beauty will be made available.

FX (linear broadcast)

Hulu (streaming in the USA)

Disney+ (international streaming)

The first season has 11 episodes. The first three episodes will be released all at once, and after that, there will be regular weekly releases for the subsequent episodes.

How The Beauty adapts the comic

The show maintains its loyalty to the comic’s concept, but the FX adaptation goes a step further and turns the whole story into a more obvious global thriller. The impacts of the virus are not limited to just a few people but affect all sectors, including hospitality, government, and even whole countries.

Instead of being vague about the series' narrative direction, FX has announced that it will mix together the investigation of a crime, the obtaining of corporate secrets, and elements of body horror with an undeniable presence in the thriller-horror genre.

The Beauty has become one of the reasons for such a large discussion because it brings together the following:

A horror concept that is both daring and ridiculous, based on societal obsession

A very well delineated investigatory plotline

An uncommon global location in horror shown on television

A cast of well-known actors

The authors of the comic book are the ones involved in the making of the series

The series is not marketed as an experiment or having an unclear structure. On the contrary, FX has pointed out a definite narrative route based on investigation, escalation, and consequence.

The Beauty is an FX horror thriller that has been officially confirmed. It is an adaptation of the Image Comics series done by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley. The show, which is produced by Ryan Murphy among others, will release on January 21, 2026, with the first season having 11 episodes.

The narrative is about the investigators from the FBI looking into the incidents of supermodel deaths that are caused by a virus that gives physical beauty with a horrifying price. The show takes place in different major cities around the world and combines investigation, conspiracy, and body horror into a series with confirmed characters, plot, and range.

With its official synopsis now available, the series is not seen as a project that is still under consideration, but a clearly organized series that is based on a premise that unambiguously reveals the perils of excessive striving for perfection.

Also read: First official look of Ryan Murphy’s The Beauty starring Evan Peters and Rebecca Hall is revealed

Edited by Sezal Srivastava

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