Daryl Hannah denounces inaccurate portrayal in Ryan Murphy’s Love Story series

Daryl Hannah has publicly criticised Ryan Murphy’s latest series, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, for misrepresenting her character. The series, which chronicles the high-profile relationship between JFK Jr and his wife Carolyn Bessette before their deaths in 1999, included a depiction of Hannah, who dated Kennedy on-and-off for about five years until 1994. In a guest essay for The New York Times, Hannah described Murphy’s portrayal as false and misleading, stating that she never engaged in drug use, pressured Kennedy into marriage, or participated in any of the controversial acts attributed to her. She described the show as “tragedy-exploiting” and accused it of perpetuating misogyny by diminishing one woman to elevate another. Hannah also noted the personal consequences of the show, including hostile messages from viewers who believed the portrayal. Family members of JFK Jr, including his nephew Jack Schlossberg, have expressed concerns about the series, claiming that the family was not consulted and criticising Murphy for profiting from their personal history. Murphy responded dismissively to Schlossberg’s comments. The series features actors Paul Anthony Kelly, Sarah Pidgeon, Grace Gummer, and Naomi Watts in key roles, and continues a pattern of controversial projects by Murphy that have faced scrutiny for sensationalising real-life tragedies.