'The Shards' Season Two? FX Show Tests Ryan Murphy's Sway at Disney
The Hollywood Reporter • • entertainment
Key Points:
- Ryan Murphy and Bret Easton Ellis envisioned The Shards as a multi-season series, but its renewal remains uncertain more than three weeks after the season finale ended on a cliffhanger.
- FX has not announced the show's status yet, which aligns with the network's history of delayed renewal decisions, as seen with other critically acclaimed series like Adults and The Lowdown.
- The Shards differs from Murphy's anthology series by following the same characters over time, and Murphy has expressed a personal connection to the 1981-set story, which parallels his own adolescence.
- Despite low linear ratings averaging 237,000 viewers, the majority of The Shards' audience likely watches via streaming, though it has not appeared in Nielsen's streaming top 10 and FX has not released viewership data.
- The Shards is the second Murphy-produced FX show this year to end on a cliffhanger without renewal, but Murphy's strong relationship with Disney and 20th Television may influence the show's future more than immediate ratings success.
