Ryan Murphy mixes ’80s glamour with a thriller in his new FX series. Viewers get a clearer glimpse of the show’s premise in the official Trailer 3. The anticipated show is based on the American Psycho author Bret Easton Ellis’ semi-autobiographical 2021 novel, The Shards.

The official synopsis reads, “Set against the vivid backdrop of 1980s Los Angeles, the series follows a group of privileged high school seniors at an elite prep school as they navigate identity, sex, jealousy, obsession, and the dangers lurking beneath the surface of American adolescence.”

Check out The Shards trailer below (watch more trailers):

What happens in The Shards’ trailer?

The trailer opens with a younger Easton Ellis narrating, “Los Angeles, 1981. I remember it so clearly,” as he walks out of a vintage car. It then shifts to the school assembly, as he continues narrating about entering his senior year at an elite prep school.

With an ’80s theme song playing in the background, the trailer captures montages of student life at the time. This is cut off with a phone call as suspense begins to set in.

Bret continues, “I had no idea that my friends and I would be haunted by perhaps the most insane serial killer ever.” A news reporter introduces the serial slayer, The Trawler, as snippets of murder, mystery, intimate scenes, and a threat lurking around the teenagers take over.

Image Credit: FX Networks

The ensemble includes Igby Rigney, Homer Gere, Kaia Gerber, Hayes Warner, Graham Campbell, Wes Bentley, Evan Rachel Wood, and Jordan Roth. The author used real events from his school life in the city with added horror elements to craft the story.

Murphy, known for Glee, American Horror Story, and 9-1-1, serves as the showrunner and executive producer. Other executive producers include Ellis, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, Eric Kovtun, Scott Robertson, Nissa Diederich, Tanase Popa, Nick Hall, Michael Uppendahl, Max Winkler, Kathleen McCaffrey, and Brian Young.

The Shards will be released on FX and Hulu on August 5, 2026.