Exploding models galore in Disney's body horror series 'The Beauty'

Obsessive beauty obsession, exploding models and a sexually transmitted virus with deadly consequences: Ryan Murphy’s lurid new blend of crime, thriller and body horror with Bella Hadid is pure extreme. Ashton Kutcher discusses the shock and awe of "The Beauty". London (dpa) – Supermodel Bella Hadid tensely totters down a Paris catwalk, sweaty and jittery. She suddenly hurls herself into the audience, grabs a bottle of water from someone, drinks frantically, then bolts. After a leaving the fashion show in a hurry, she attacks paparazzi and people dining at a restaurant, before police ultimately surround her. But there's no arrest – Hadid suddenly explodes. The series opens with this shock scene, and things barely slow down afterwards. Ryan Murphy, the star producer and writer behind "Nip/Tuck", "Glee" and "American Horror Story", is embracing body horror with his latest series "The Beauty", now streaming its first three episodes on Disney. The cast includes Evan Peters, Rebecca Hall, Antony Ramos, Jeremy Pope and Ashton Kutcher, who is returning to the role of an ice-cold villain after a three-year acting hiatus. "I think everyone's probably someone's villain," Kutcher told dpa in London. "I didn't approach the character as a villain. You approach the character and you try find out what they want, what they desire, what they're willing to do to get that. And then you start breaking that apart." Kutcher plays a ruthless tech billionaire behind the so-called Corporation which has developed a secret serum that lets ordinary people attain their desired ideal of beauty. The miracle cure has dramatic side effects, however. Patients carry a deadly virus that can be transmitted, including through sexual contact, that makes them aggressive. After several supermodels die in similar fashion, FBI agents Cooper Madsen (Peters) and Jordan Bennett (Hall) investigate the mystery. Their trail through Paris, Venice, Rome and New York quickly puts them in danger. Meanwhile a hitman with a taste for yacht rock, especially the songs of Christopher Cross, is trying to cover up signs of infection so that The Corporation can avoid negative headlines ahead of the serum’s launch. Ramos plays the assassin, a kind of James Bond villain. "Ryan just created this amazing palette," Kutcher said. "You get this very poignant, very topical, very pop-culture, social question at the heart of it: How far would you go for beauty?" He said that was why he could not say no, adding there were parallels to the five-time Oscar-nominated film "The Substance" starring his ex-wife Demi Moore. "The Beauty" is a peculiar and fast-paced blend of crime, thriller and horror with explicit sex and a dash of humour. The series, based on the comic of the same name, does not lack for action. Peters describes it, jokingly, as an "international sci-fi satirical body horror action thriller with a little bit of romance sprinkled in." At its core, he said, are people with their obsessions, quirks and feelings. "I will say Ryan … has always been a champion of finding the thing that is you and amplifying that." Cameos and guest appearances include Hadid, Isabella Rossellini, pop star Meghan Trainor and Nicola Peltz Beckham, whose husband Brooklyn Beckham is currently making headlines with a family feud. Over its 11 episodes the story becomes increasingly absurd, in a good way. After a somewhat clichéd legal soap "All’s Fair" with Kim Kardashian and Glenn Close, Murphy returns to form with "The Beauty".The contrast between glossy erotica and often unappetising images, between horror and dry humour, is original and highly entertaining. The following information is not intended for publication dpa pde xx n1 rew

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