The Shards
Where to Watch ‘The Shards’ TV Series Online for Free
Bret Easton Ellis’s best-selling novel gets the Ryan Murphy treatment in this new FX series
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August 5, 2026
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Kaia Gerber as Susan, Reynolds, Homer Gere as Robert Mallory FX
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Bret Easton Ellis’s best-selling semi-autobiographical novel The Shards is coming to the small screen this week.
The new series, created by TV titan Ryan Murphy, will see Igby Rigney playing a 17-year-old version of Bret during his senior year at Los Angeles’s prestigious Buckley prep school. Bret’s high school career is upended when a mysterious new student, Robert Mallory (Homer Gere), arrives on campus, and a serial killer starts targeting local teenagers.
At a Glance: Where to Watch The Shards Online
- TV channel: FX
- Stream for free: DirecTV, YouTube TV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV
- Stream with paid subscription: Hulu
- Premieres Wednesday, Aug. 5 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT
The Shards will also star model and actress Kaia Gerber as Bret’s friend Susan Reynolds and Wes Bentley (Yellowstone, Interstellar, The Hunger Games) as Terry Schaffer, a famous movie producer close to Bret’s circle.
Where to Watch The Shards TV Series Online for Free
The Shards will be available on FX, and it will be streaming on Hulu on the same day.
However, if you want to stream The Shards for free, you can get a free trial to any live TV streaming service that carries FX. Here are four of the best options:
editor’s Pick
DirecTV
➤ Five-day free trial
➤ $42.99/month
➤ Up to 185+ channels
FX is available to stream in DirecTV’s MyEntertainment Genre Pack and all of its larger Signature Packages. Plus, all of these plans include a Hulu subscription free of charge. The plans start at $42.99 a month, but all of them start with a five-day free trial that you can use to watch The Shards for free for a few days.
YouTube TV
➤ 7-21-day free trial
➤ $64.99/month
➤ Up to 100+ channels
Another way to watch The Shards for free is with YouTube TV. The service carries FX in both of its plans, which start with a free trial between seven and 21 days. After the trial, plans start at $54.99 for your first month and $64.99 a month after that.
Fubo
➤ Five-day free trial
➤ $88.99/month
➤ Up to 300+ channels
Fubo offers FX streams in its Core and Ultra packages, which both start with a five-day free trial. After the free trial, pricing for these plans starts at $88.99 a month, but you’ll also get a $25 discount on your first month.
Hulu + Live TV
➤ Three-day free trial
➤ $89.99/month
➤ 100+ channels
Hulu + Live TV also carries FX for The Shards streams, and it includes access to Hulu’s on-demand library for more ways to watch. The service costs $89.99 a month but starts with a three-day free trial.
The Shards TV Series Release Date
The Shards premieres on Wednesday, Aug. 5 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.
What Book Is The Shards Based On?
The Shards is based on Bret Easton Ellis’s book of the same name. You can buy it now in paperback, hardcover, Kindle, or audiobook versions at Amazon here.
The Shards: A novel
Available as paperback, hardcover, Kindle, or audiobook
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