The Shards is an American teen thriller television series for FX and FX on Hulu. It premiered on August 5, 2026. The series was created by Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis, based on Ellis' semi-autobiographical novel.
Contents
Premise
The series is set in Los Angeles in 1981. The story follows a 17-year-old version of Ellis during his final year at the elite Buckley prep school. Upending the character's world is the arrival of a mysterious new student, Robert Mallory, whose unsettling presence coincides with the activities of a serial killer known as The Trawler.
Cast and characters
Main
Igby Rigney as Bret Easton Ellis, a senior at the Buckley prep school and aspiring writer
Kaia Gerber as Susan Reynolds, the student body president at Buckley and Thom's girlfriend
Homer Gere as Robert Mallory, a mysterious new student at Buckley
Hayes Warner as Debbie Schaffer, a popular student at Buckley and Bret's girlfriend
Graham Campbell as Thom Wright, the school quarterback and Susan's boyfriend
Evan Rachel Wood as Liz Schaffer, Debbie's mother and a former model, with whom Debbie has a tense relationship
Wes Bentley as Terry Schaffer, Debbie's father and a noted Hollywood film producer
Recurring
Owen Painter as Matt Kellner, a reclusive student at Buckley with whom Bret has a secret relationship
Jordan Roth as Steven Reinhardt, Terry's flamboyant and enigmatic assistant
Daniel Dale as Ryan Gifford / Troy Wad, a student at Buckley and a pornographic film actor who has brief affairs with Bret and Debbie
Ivy Wolk as Really Rhonda, a student at Buckley who suffers from a neurological condition that causes sudden and unfiltered verbal outbursts
Cortés Alexander as Principal Croft
Guest
Gus Halper as Bruce, the leader of the Riders of the Afterlife cult and a former high school English teacher
Dot-Marie Jones as Jan "Butch" Banxxx, a prolific pornographic film producer
Bella Valdes as Corazón "Cha Cha" Rodriguez, a popular dancer on the television show Dance Off!
Ginifer King as Mrs. Wright, Thom's mother
Anthony Ramos as Tony Cruz, the host of Dance Off!
James Wolk as Ron Kellner, Matt's father
Chris Conner as Detective Fregosi
Noma Dumezweni as Ms. Rogers
Constance Zimmer as Abigail, Robert's aunt
Production
Development
In April 2023, it was reported that Ellis would write the series based on his novel for HBO, with Ellis executive producing alongside Nick Hall and Brian Young. In a June 2023 interview with the Spanish publication El Independiente, Ellis had confirmed that Luca Guadagnino was set to direct the series with Ellis himself saying that he may direct some episodes as well. In January 2025, Ellis revealed that the adaptation, which Kristoffer Borgli had signed on to direct, was no longer being developed at HBO, following creative differences. In February 2025, Ryan Murphy was revealed to be in closing talks to revive the project at a different network.
In May 2025, it was announced that FX was in early development on the series and it would be directed by Max Winkler. It is produced by 20th Television in association with Ryan Murphy Television. Murphy, Ellis and Winkler executive produce alongside Nick Hall, Kathleen McCaffrey, Michael Uppendahl, Brian Young, Alexis Martin Woodall, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, Braxton Pope, and Tanase Popa. In July 2025, the series was officially greenlit. Murphy has talked about a plan for the show to run for at least 3 seasons.
Casting
Prior to the series order, Jacob Elordi was reported to be in talks for a role in the adaption in September 2023. In July 2025, in addition to the greenlight of the show announcement, it was revealed that Igby Rigney, Homer Gere, and Graham Campbell joined the cast as Ellis, Robert Mallory, and Thom Wright respectively. In August 2025, it was revealed that Hayes Warner joined the cast as Debbie Schaffer. In October 2025, Wes Bentley joined the cast as Debbie's father Terry alongside Evan Rachel Wood and Jordan Roth who were cast in recurring roles. In April 2026, it was reported that Owen Painter had been cast to the series.
Music
In July 2026, it was revealed that Troye Sivan and his longtime collaborator Leland contributed the original music for The Shards alongside Oscar Görres and the series star Hayes Warner.
Filming
Principal photography began in November 2025 and wrapped in March 2026.
Release
In March 2026, Brad Simpson revealed in an interview that the series had been aiming for a summer airdate. In June 2026, it was announced that the series would premiere on August 5, 2026.
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 56% of 57 critics' reviews are positive, with an average of rated reviews of 6.3/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "The combination of Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis should elicit magnanimously pulpy TV, but instead The Shards relegates itself to obtuse style with mildly entertaining substance." Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 55 out of 100, based on 24 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.