Right now it seems that Ryan Murphy can do now wrong.
Today FX has placed an order for Murphy’s latest anthology franchise, Feud, an 8-episode series that will explore the bouts and blows of epic conflicts, it was announced by John Landgraf, CEO, FX Networks and FX Productions. Fox 21 Television Studios will produce the series for FX.
The first installment of Feud stars Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon and tells the story of the legendary rivalry between two of the greatest movie stars of all time—Joan Crawford (Lange) and Bette Davis (Sarandon), and how they came together in 1962 to collaborate on a picture each hoped would revive their careers.
The result, the critically acclaimed and box office smash What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? ultimately received five Academy Awards nominations and became a cult classic.
But for its leads, Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, the real horror was working together. Murphy will direct several episodes of the series.
In addition to Academy Award winners Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon, the cast includes celebrated actors Alfred Molina as the film’s director Robert Aldrich, Stanley Tucci as studio titan Jack Warner, Judy Davis as gossip columnist Hedda Hopper and Dominic Burgess as Crawford and Davis’ co-star Victor Buono.
“Ryan keeps re-inventing TV,” said FX Networks CEO John Landgraf. “Nip/Tuck brilliantly extended the boundaries of ad supported television. Glee re-imagined the television musical. American Horror Story pioneered the modern anthological series, which has rapidly transformed the television landscape and been widely copied.”
“The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story was recognized by many as the best and most talked about new show this year. And all of those shows have been award-winning ratings hits. Feud adds a third and equally ambitious franchise to Ryan’s unprecedented slate of FX anthological limited series and marks our third such collaboration with studio partner 20th Century Fox Television/Fox 21. The series will offer a seductive, insightful look at what lies behind legendary personality conflicts.”