FX and Hulu Dramatize JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Romance
New FX/Hulu series dramatizes John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette’s relationship, begins with their July 16, 1999 crash and has drawn family criticism.
Overview
FX and Hulu’s Love Story premiered with three episodes on Hulu, and one new episode will air each Thursday on FX at 9 p.m. ET/PT and stream on Hulu the next day.
The nine-episode series, created by Connor Hines and produced by Ryan Murphy, begins by depicting the July 16, 1999 crash and then rewinds to trace the couple’s courtship and marriage.
Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy’s nephew, criticized the series as profiting off his family; Ryan Murphy responded on Governor Gavin Newsom’s podcast; executive producer Brad Simpson said the team was mindful of real people and tragedies.
The plane piloted by Kennedy crashed on July 16, 1999, plummeting from 2,200 feet to 1,100 feet in 14 seconds and killing Kennedy, 38; Bessette-Kennedy, 33; and Lauren Bessette, 34.
The series adapts Elizabeth Beller’s book and will continue weekly, while Netflix has announced a separate Kennedy series with Michael Fassbender as Joe Kennedy Sr.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame the coverage as sympathetic to the show's makers while acknowledging family backlash. Editorial choices juxtapose a single family critic's strong condemnation with multiple producer and actor reassurances about research and integrity, use romanticized background language, and prioritize creator defenses and context over broader critical perspectives.
Sources (7)
FAQ
The nine-episode series, created by Connor Hines and produced by Ryan Murphy, begins by depicting the July 16, 1999 plane crash and then rewinds to trace John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette’s courtship and marriage. It premiered with three episodes on Hulu, with one new episode airing each Thursday on FX at 9 p.m. ET/PT and streaming on Hulu the next day.
The plane piloted by Kennedy crashed on July 16, 1999, plummeting from 2,200 feet to 1,100 feet in 14 seconds into the Atlantic Ocean off Martha's Vineyard, killing Kennedy (38), Bessette-Kennedy (33), and Lauren Bessette (34).
Jack Schlossberg, Kennedy’s nephew, criticized the series as profiting off his family. Ryan Murphy responded on Governor Gavin Newsom’s podcast, and executive producer Brad Simpson said the team was mindful of real people and tragedies.
They met in 1992 at a Calvin Klein fitting where Bessette worked with VIP clients; Kennedy asked for her number. They married secretly on September 21, 1996, in a small ceremony at First African Baptist Church on Cumberland Island, Georgia.
The series depicts JFK Jr.'s on-and-off relationship with Daryl Hannah, played by Dree Hemingway, which overlapped with meeting Carolyn Bessette; they met in the 1980s, dated publicly from 1992, and split before Jackie Kennedy's death in 1994.
History
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