American Psycho: A stabby LA horror meta-memoir

When kids today have it easy, they don’t have to reckon with climate change or unemployment. But what about the shadows lurking behind the manicured lawns of high school? Bret Easton Ellis, the controversial author of American Psycho and The Rules Of Attraction, decided to give us a dose of that chilling reality in his meta-memoir, The Shards. This new show is a deliciously lurid look at his senior high school year—a period where the glamorous surface of 1981 Los Angeles masks the very real danger of serial killers.

The era of innocence has faded with every tragedy, but in this fictionalized world, darkness isn’t hidden; it’s just waiting in the parking lots and alleyways. The soundtrack perfectly mirrors this mood, mixing the hedonistic vibe of The Stranglers’ ‘Golden Brown’ with the atmospheric soundscapes of Duran Duran’s ‘Planet Earth’ and Ultravox’s ‘Vienna.’

Creating this stylishly sick narrative was Ryan Murphy, the director behind hits like Glee and American Horror Story. Murphy perfectly captured the essence of high school drama, shifting the focus from mall shopping for vinyl to blowing allowances on drugs, setting a tone that could easily be called The Bold And The Beautiful.

In the series, Bret is introduced as he ogles a mysterious newcomer at a film screening of The Shining. A year later, this fascination deepens when he discovers the handsome young fellow is Robert Mallory (Homer Gere), a new attendee at the elite Hollywood high school where they all pretend to carve out an education.

While Bret navigates the social scene with friends like Debbie (Hayes Warner), Thom (Graham Campbell), and Susan (Kaia Gerber), the presence of Robert creates immediate unease. The newcomer refuses to acknowledge their shared history, raising the chilling question: Is he just another popularity-seeking rival at school, or is there something far more sinister lurking beneath his polished exterior?

Though the show is not explicitly about Bret himself—aside from a brief nod to Less Than Zero and the setting of his debut novel in 1985—the premise is tantalizing. Playing with themes of paranoia, the narrative invites viewers to ponder if Robert might be connected to the murderous spree that left the city paralyzed with fear.

The production design is pure 1980s glamour, highlighted by details like Debbie’s landline phone, uniquely shaped like a pair of lips. The aesthetic is impeccable, though one creative choice—casting Cindy Crawford’s 24-year-old daughter Kaia Gerber as a high schooler—seems deliberately chosen, nodding to the reality that in LA, there are almost as many nepo babies as maniac killers.

The Shards is available to watch on Disney+ now.