Ryan Murphy defends upcoming JFK Jr. series as nephew Jack Schlossberg calls it ‘grotesque’

Ryan Murphy is blasting critics of his upcoming series American Love Story, which follows the ill-fated lives of John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife Carolyn Bessette.

He’s on the defensive.

Super producer Ryan Murphy is blasting critics of his upcoming show American Love Story, which is about the ‘90s It couple, John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy.

“It’s very interesting that people become so inflammatory,” Murphy told Variety in a story published Thursday.

He was referring to the backlash when he posted a “first look” photo of actors Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon in costume in the roles on Instagram last week.

Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon star as JFK Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy in American Love Story. Picture: Instagram

Ryan Murphy defends upcoming JFK Jr. series. Picture: Instagram

Critics derided the clothing as being “completely off” and looking like “Zara,” and failing to capture the essence of the fashion icons.

“This is OFFENSIVE,” one indignant fan posted on Twitter, alongside the photo of Pidgeon in costume.

Another critic blasted it as, “This is so Zara Basic 2015.”

“Her blonde hair is all wrong,” wrote another person. “She was famous for the varying blonde tones, the highlights and lowlights. It should be warmer. Not platinum. Please try again.”

“Doesn’t capture the essence of CBK,” another person commented.

JFK Jr. with Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy at the White House Correspondents dinner in 1999. Picture: Tyler Mallory/Liaison

“Nope. Accuracy & research in costume design. Even in test photos. I’m underwhelmed. That shade of blonde …You can’t just throw on a modern (cheap) coat and thinks it’s giving this,” they concluded, sharing a photo of the real Bessette-Kennedy.

Murphy told the outlet that the actors’ outfits were not pieces they’ll wear on the show. Rather, they were thrown together for lighting and colour tests – to get ahead of the paparazzi set photos when the production films in New York City.

“There were comments like, ‘I hate that coat, Carolyn would never have worn that,’” Murphy said.

“That was just a coat we threw on for colour. People were writing, ‘How dare you use the No. 35 Birkin bag? She wore a 40!’ Yes, we have a 40 but we just threw on a bag from another costume department because that was the soundstage we were on.”

He said he had a 10-person “style advisory board” to put together Bessette-Kennedy’s look.

Bessette-Kennedy was famous for her high-end fashion. The socialite died at age 33 in a plane crash off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in 1999. JFK Jr. died with her in that crash, at age 38.

Murphy said the production will use some clothing from the real Bessette-Kennedy.

“We have multiple pairs of Manolo black heels and sandals from 1992 to 1999. We have the Manolo boots she wore in black and brown. We have her Prada tall boots. We have her Prada bags,” he explained.

Ryan Murphy, who won an Emmy for Outstanding Limited Series for The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story in 2018, has defended the series. Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

“We have the Birkin No. 40 that we have taken to a specialist to scruff it up so it looks identical to the one she would wear half-open on the subway.”

Murphy insisted that the public reaction is “not fair.”

“We’re writing a story about a person – an unknown person – who falls in love with the most famous man in the world and suddenly she can’t leave her house. She was constantly being photographed, being called a c** t by the paparazzi,” he said.

JFK Jr and Bessette circa 1995, just before their 1996 wedding. Picture: Rose Hartman/Getty Images

The couple died in a plane crash off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard in 1999. Picture: Jon Naso/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images

Regarding the scrutiny on the first look photos, he said, “They’re doing to our Carolyn, what they did to the real-life Carolyn. It’s not fair.”

This isn’t Murphy’s first time landing in hot water with the real-life subjects of his shows.

His 2024 show Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story faced criticism for suggesting an incestuous relationship between the infamous brothers who went to jail for the 1989 murder of their parents, Jose and Kitty Menendez.

Erik, 53, spoke out in a statement and said the “dishonest” show is filled with “horrible and blatant lies” about himself and his brother Lyle, 56.

Some relatives of Jeffrey Dahmer’s victims also spoke out against Murphy’s other Netflix series Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.

Murphy is also behind the hit Netflix series Monsters: The Lyle And Erik Menendez Story, which stars Javier Bardem, Cooper Koch, Nicholas Alexander Chavez, Ryan Murphy and Chloë Sevigny. Picture: Kevin Winter/Getty Images

On Thursday, former President John F. Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg put Murphy on blast and said that American Love Story is “grotesque.”

“Lately, my news feed has been filled with pictures of my uncle, John F. Kennedy Jr., a great man,” Schlossberg, 32, said in an Instagram video, referencing the Murphy-produced show.

“For those wondering whether his family was ever consulted, or has anything to do with the new show being made about him, the answer is no. And there’s not much we can do.”

The Kennedy scion added, “For the record, I think admiration for my Uncle John is great. What I don’t think is great is profiting off of it in a grotesque way.”

This article originally appeared in New York Post and was reproduced with permission

Originally published as Ryan Murphy defends upcoming JFK Jr. series as nephew Jack Schlossberg calls it ‘grotesque’