Naomi Watts as Babe Paley. Pari Dukovic/FX
Before The Real Housewives of New York City, there were Truman Capote’s Swans.
Nearly seven years after its debut season in 2017, FX’s Feud is finally returning to the small screen with a brand-new story. Titled Capote vs. The Swans, season 2 will follow the real-life drama between famed novelist Capote (Tom Hollander) and his close circle of New York’s most elite women, whom he nicknamed “The Swans.”
The season is largely based on Laurence Leamer’s 2021 book Capote’s Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, and a Swan Song for an Era, which tells the story of how Capote betrayed his friends by publishing their secrets.
Series cocreator Ryan Murphy returns as an executive producer for the show’s sophomore outing, which stars Naomi Watts as magazine editor and socialite Babe Paley. Other members of The Swans include Diane Lane as Nancu “Slim “Keith, Chloë Sevigny as C.Z. Guest, Calista Flockhart as Lee Radziwill, Demi Moore as Ann Woodward and Molly Ringwald as Joanne Carson.
Scroll down to find out everything we know about Feud: Capote vs. The Swans:
What Is ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans’ About?
Per the show’s official description, the season will follow Capote as he weaves himself into The Swans’ close-knit circle, “only to ultimately betray them by writing a thinly veiled fictionalization of their lives, exposing their most intimate secrets.”
The synopsis continued: “When an excerpt from the book, Answered Prayers, Capote’s planned magnum opus, was published in Esquire, it effectively destroyed his relationship with his swans, banished him from the high society he so loved and sent him into a spiral of self-destruction from which he would ultimately never recover.”
Tom Hollander as Truman Capote Pari Dukovic/FX
Who Is in the ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans’ Cast?
Season 2’s star-studded cast also includes Joe Mantello as Jack Dunphy and Russell Tovey as John O’Shea. Capote vs. The Swans will also mark late actor Treat Williams’ final role as he plays businessman William “Bill” Paley. Williams died at age 71 following a motorcycle accident in June 2023.
Will Any ‘Feud’ Season 1 Stars Appear in ‘Capote vs. The Swans?’
Murphy teased via Instagram in December 2023 that his longtime collaborator Jessica Lange will appear in the show’s second season. She briefly made an appearance in the show’s January 2024 trailer, though details about her role have not been revealed.
Lange, who has appeared in other Murphy projects such as American Horror Story and The Politician, previously starred as Joan Crawford in Feud season 1 alongside Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis.
Demi Moore as Ann Woodward. Pari Dukovic/FX
When Does ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans’ Premiere?
The first two episodes of season 2 will premiere on FX Wednesday, January 31, at 10 p.m. ET and will also be available to stream on Hulu.
What Happened to Truman Capote in Real Life?
Prior to his betrayal of The Swans, Capote rose to fame with his literary works including In Cold Blood and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. He struggled with drug and alcohol addiction and underwent rehab multiple times.
While Answered Prayers was never published, Esquire released four of the book’s chapters between 1975 and 1976. One chapter seemingly accused Bill Paley of having an affair while married to his wife. As a result, Capote’s relationships with New York’s elite were ruined, especially his close connection with Babe Paley. He continued to struggle with addiction until his death at age 59 in 1984.
Chloë Sevigny as C.Z. Guest. Pari Dukovic/FX
Is There a Trailer for ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans?’
The first trailer for Feud season 2 was released in January 2024. While Capote is at the center of the drama, the trailer revealed that the show will focus on The Swans’ side of the story.
“Tell me everything,” Hollander’s Capote tells Watts’ Babe in the first look, after which she seemingly opens up about her husband’s alleged affair. “I don’t know what matters more to him, the sex or me knowing about it,” she states.
Later in the trailer, Mantello’s Jack Dunphy warns Capote of publishing his exposé about The Swans. “Truman, these are people’s deepest secrets,” he informs Capote. “Why would you want to hurt them? You cannot splay these things out.”
The trailer ends with Lane’s Slim Keith telling her fellow Swans, “We stand united and we destroy him,” to which Flockhart’s Lee Radziwill responds, “Oh, I’m in, honey.”