The first full trailer for Ryan Murphy‘s next television event, The Beauty, has arrived, promising a high-stakes thriller that merges global glamour with shocking body horror. Debuting on January 21, 2026, on FX and Hulu, the series explores the terrifying consequences of a drug that delivers physical perfection at a lethal cost. The preview introduces a sprawling cast led by Evan Peters, Rebecca Hall, and a villainous Ashton Kutcher, who brings a dangerous new product to the world of high fashion.
The Premise: A Sexually Transmitted Miracle with a Fatal Flaw
Based on the Image Comics series by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley, The Beauty is set in motion when international supermodels begin dying in grotesque and mysterious ways. FBI Agents Cooper Madsen (Evan Peters) and Jordan Bennett (Rebecca Hall) are dispatched to Paris to investigate. They soon uncover that the deaths are linked to a sexually transmitted virus known as “the Beauty”. This engineered treatment transforms ordinary people into visions of physical perfection but carries a devastating side effect: it is fatal. Their investigation pulls them into the orbit of a shadowy tech billionaire known only as “The Corporation,” played by Ashton Kutcher, who has developed and unleashed the drug as a revolutionary product.
Ashton Kutcher’s character boasts in the trailer, “I’m the greatest goddamn advertisement for the hottest new super drug that makes you effortlessly beautiful”.
The story rapidly expands from a Parisian murder mystery into a global chase. The agents’ pursuit takes them from Paris to Venice, Rome, and New York, trying to contain a growing epidemic while evading the ruthless enforcer working for The Corporation, “The Assassin,” played by Anthony Ramos. Another key figure is Jeremy, played by Jeremy Pope, described as a desperate outsider caught in the escalating chaos.
A Star-Studded Cast and a Villainous Turn
The series marks a major return to the Ryan Murphy universe for Evan Peters, who last worked with the producer on Monster. Here, he plays the determined FBI agent Cooper Madsen. He is partnered with Rebecca Hall’s Jordan Bennett, with the actors noting their characters share a complex “benefits” relationship that begins almost immediately.
A central talking point from the trailer is Ashton Kutcher’s performance as the slick, amoral villain The Corporation. Kutcher revealed that Ryan Murphy personally persuaded him to take the role, saying, “You’ve never really played a villain, and I think that this is the villain for you”. Kutcher saw the character’s appeal in the show’s proximity to reality, telling Vanity Fair, “I love this notion of giving people some superhuman capability that is not 10 steps removed from today, but two steps removed from today”.
The supporting and guest cast is vast and notable, featuring Bella Hadid as a supermodel afflicted by the drug, Isabella Rossellini, Ben Platt, Vincent D’Onofrio, Jessica Alexander, Meghan Trainor, and many more. The trailer offers glimpses of the horror, including Hadid’s character in a frenzied state and a brief scene featuring Trainor.
Ryan Murphy’s Thematic Return and “Ozempic Culture”
For Ryan Murphy, The Beauty represents a thematic successor to earlier work like Nip/Tuck, once again scrutinizing society’s obsession with physical perfection and the extremes people will endure to achieve it. Murphy has explicitly described the series as a commentary on contemporary “Ozempic culture,” referring to the widespread use of drugs for rapid physical transformation. The show questions the price of such enhancements in an age where pharmaceutical solutions are heavily marketed.
Evan Peters’ character articulates a dark worldview in the series, stating, “I think everything that we do from the minute we hit puberty to the second we die is about sexโฆ torturing ourselves for some promotion. And everything that we do is about our universal, unquenchable thirst to be considered attractive enough to get laid”.
This nihilistic perspective is countered by his partner, with Rebecca Hall’s character delivering a quintessentially Murphy-esque retort: “Live, laugh, and fuck”. The actors have highlighted the show’s genre-blending nature, with Peters calling it “an international sci-fi satirical body-horror action-thriller”.
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Production Details and Release Schedule
The series was officially ordered by FX in September 2024. Filming began in New York City in December 2024 and included locations in Pearl River, New York. The score is composed by Mac Quayle, a frequent Murphy collaborator.
The Beauty will premiere with a three-episode drop on Wednesday, January 21, 2026. The first three episodes, titled “Beautiful Pilot,” “Beautiful Jordan,” and “Beautiful Christopher Cross,” will be available at 9 p.m. ET on both FX and Hulu. The remaining eight episodes of the 11-episode first season will be released weekly on Wednesdays, with two episodes dropping in each of the final two weeks. Internationally, the series will be available on Disney+.
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