More than three decades after her highly publicized relationship with John F. Kennedy Jr., actress Daryl Hannah has finally spoken up about it.
In an opinion essay published in The New York Times on March 6, 2026, Hannah sharply criticized the FX series Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, the first installment of Ryan Murphy’s anthology about famous romances.
Highlights
- Actress Daryl Hannah published a scathing essay slamming her portrayal in the new Ryan Murphy series 'Love Story.'
- Hannah explicitly refuted scenes depicted in the show, including allegations of substance-fueled parties.
- The actress revealed she had been bombarded with threatening messages from viewers who mistook the show’s dramatization for historical fact.
The show dramatizes Kennedy’s relationship with his future wife, Carolyn Bessette, while portraying Hannah as his former girlfriend.
Daryl Hannah claimed that the series misrepresented her life and relationship with JFK Jr.
Image credits: Getty/Matt Winkelmeyer
In her essay, Hannah strongly rejected the way she was depicted in Love Story, where actress Dree Hemingway portrays her character.
“The character ‘Daryl Hannah’ portrayed in the series is not even a remotely accurate representation of my life, my conduct, or my relationship with John,” Hannah wrote in The New York Times. “The actions and behaviors attributed to me are untrue.”
The nine-episode series chronicles Kennedy’s romance with Hannah before shifting focus to his eventual relationship with Carolyn Bessette, whom he married in 1996.
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According to Hannah, the show intentionally portrayed her as “irritating, self-absorbed, whiny, and inappropriate,” turning her into a narrative obstacle to highlight the central love story.
“The choice to present her that way was no accident,” she wrote.
Hannah further noted she had historically avoided responding to rumors about her personal life but felt compelled to speak out this time because the series used her real name and depicted specific behaviors as factual.
“My silence should not be mistaken for agreement with lies,” she wrote.
Hannah also pushed back on several scenes depicted in the show
Image credits: Eric Liebowitz/FX
One of Hannah’s strongest criticisms targeted scenes suggesting she hosted substance-fueled parties.
“I have never used c*caine in my life or hosted c*caine-fueled parties,” she wrote.
The actress also rejected several other controversial moments depicted in the series, including storylines that implied she pressured Kennedy into marriage or behaved disrespectfully toward the Kennedy family.
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Image credits: Eric Liebowitz/FX
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“I have never pressured anyone into marriage. I have never desecrated any family heirloom or intruded upon anyone’s private memorial,” she wrote.
She further disputed scenes suggesting she manipulated media coverage of her relationship.
“I have never planted any story in the press. I never compared Jacqueline Onassis’ d*ath to a dog’s,” she added, referencing Kennedy’s mother, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.
“These are not creative embellishments of personality,” Hannah wrote. “They are assertions about conduct — and they are false.”
Hannah further explained that the series’ dramatization had real-world consequences
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“When entertainment borrows a real person’s name, it can permanently impact her reputation,” she wrote.
According to the actress, viewers who believed the show’s depiction to be factual began sending her hostile messages.
“In the weeks since the series aired, I have received many hostile and even threatening messages from viewers who seem to believe the portrayal is factual,” she said.
Image credits: Getty/Stephen Rose
The actress emphasized that reputation matters not out of vanity but because it affects the work she continues to do today, particularly her environmental advocacy and nonprofit efforts.
“For decades, my work has focused on environmental advocacy, documentary filmmaking, and animal-assisted therapy for seniors living with dementia and Alzheimer’s,” she wrote.
Hannah and JFK Jr. had a highly publicized relationship in the late 1980s and early 1990s
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Hannah and John F. Kennedy Jr. first met in the early 1980s while their families were vacationing on the Caribbean island of St. Martin, according to Steven M. Gillon’s biography America’s Reluctant Prince: The Life of John F. Kennedy Jr.
They reconnected in 1988 at the wedding of Kennedy’s aunt Lee Radziwill to director Herb Ross, who had worked with Hannah on Steel Magnolias.
Soon after, the pair began an on-and-off relationship that lasted more than five years.
During that time, their romance frequently made headlines, as Kennedy, the son of President John F. Kennedy, was widely considered one of the world’s most eligible bachelors.
In a 1993 interview with Entertainment Weekly, Hannah expressed frustration over constant speculation about their relationship.
“It’s getting really annoying. I get asked about it all the time,” she said at the time.
“This morning I called up my plumber, and even he asks me.”
A neighbor also described witnessing the couple’s playful dynamic during their relationship.
“They were doing this little love play,” the onlooker told People magazine in 1993. “He was tickling her, and she’d run away. Then he’d catch her, and they’d dance around.”
Despite years of rumors about a possible engagement, the couple ultimately ended their relationship in 1994.
"She needs to sue him," one user wrote
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