FX’s provocative new thriller The Beauty arrives Wednesday, January 21, 2026 – the first three episodes premiere at 9 p.m. ET/PT on FX and Hulu in the U.S., with international streaming on Disney+ – providing viewers with a globe‑spanning, body‑horror meditation on perfection that promises high production values and moral unease.
When FX invited the press to a conference to debut the trailer and introduce the cast, Evan Peters (Cooper Madsen), Rebecca Hall (Jordan Bennett), Anthony Ramos (The Assassin), Jeremy Pope (Jeremy) and Ashton Kutcher (The Corporation) took the stage with FX’s Susan Kesser, and the trailer – which Kesser noted has already amassed nearly 190 million views – set the tone: glamorous locations, sudden violence, and a central mystery that is as topical as it is terrifying. The series, created by Ryan Murphy and Matt Hodgson and adapted from a comic, is an 11‑episode run that blends science fiction and body horror with a glossy international aesthetic.
At its core The Beauty asks a deceptively simple question: what would you sacrifice for perfection? The press conference made clear that the show intends to answer that question on multiple levels. Rebecca Hall framed the series as an interrogation of “the commodification of beauty,” arguing that the industry profits from keeping people feeling inadequate – a theme the show explores through the hunt for a sexually transmitted virus and a biotech miracle called The Beauty. Ashton Kutcher pushed the point into the present day, tying the premise to real‑world trends – from GLP‑1 weight‑loss drugs to gene editing – and asking bluntly, “what are you willing to sacrifice?” Those remarks made the series feel less like speculative fiction and more like a near‑future parable about choices we are already making.
Narratively, the show pairs procedural momentum with personal stakes. Peters’ FBI agent starts out trying to “figure out why people are exploding,” as he put it at the conference, but the investigation quickly becomes personal and forces him to go rogue; Hall’s Jordan is both partner and emotional counterweight, their relationship described onstage as “best friends with benefits” hiding deeper vulnerability. Meanwhile, Ramos and Pope described a dark, unexpected bond between The Assassin and Jeremy – a mentor‑protégé dynamic that humanizes characters who might otherwise be pure antagonists.
Visually and tonally, the series leans into its locations – Paris, Venice, Rome and New York – and the press anecdotes about shooting at the Trevi Fountain at dawn or arriving to set by water taxi underline how much the production uses place as character. If you tune in on January 21, expect a show that is stylish, unsettling, and morally messy: it wants you to admire the surface even as it forces you to question why you do. For viewers who follow Ryan Murphy’s work, The Beauty looks set to be another conversation starter – and, judging by the trailer’s reach, one the audience is already eager to have.
Press Play Media 