Ryan Murphy’s The Beauty Is Wildly Entertaining and Surprisingly Smart

The new series kicks off with two episodes on January 21st, and its core idea strongly resembles the dark comedy horror film The Substance, a 2024 Best Picture nominee that garnered Oscar nods for director Coralie Fargeat and star Demi Moore. The series centers around a groundbreaking biotech product called The Beauty, which triggers dramatic physical changes – through a somewhat disturbing process involving a fleshy cocoon – transforming people who are old, sick, or considered unattractive into young, healthy, and beautiful versions of themselves. Most showrunners would likely try to distance their work from a recent, popular film. However, creator Greg Murphy is known for being bold. Interestingly, he cast Ashton Kutcher – famous both as an actor and a venture capitalist, and for marrying Demi Moore when she was 42 and he was 27 – as the mastermind behind The Beauty.

Pregnant Jess Impiazzi, 36, confirms the gender of her ‘miracle’ baby after being told she had the fertility of a 55-year-old and years of ‘constant disappointment’ during IVF battle

As a lifestyle expert, I’m always inspired by stories of strength and joy, and I was so touched to see the news shared by this incredible 36-year-old! She announced her pregnancy on Instagram, and it’s particularly moving because she achieved this through IVF while also navigating the challenges of chronic lupus. It’s a beautiful reminder that dreams can come true, even with obstacles.

‘The Beauty’ takes on beauty standards with lots of body horror

The scene opens with a supermodel – played by Bella Hadid – losing control on a Paris fashion runway. She throws water bottles at the audience, shoves people aside, and generally causes chaos. She then steals a motorcycle and speeds through the city to the beat of Prodigy’s “Firestarter” before crashing. Despite being injured, she enters a cafe, aggressively drinks water, and continues her violent outburst. Even after being shot, she doesn’t stop, and ends up facing a line of armed police officers in the street. The scene culminates in a dramatic explosion, followed by the opening credits.