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Now that an official first look at Ryan Murphy’s American Love Story is out, the world has had a lot to say about the show’s portrayal of its main subjects: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy.
Murphy’s new project is diving into the love story between John Jr., the son of President John F. Kennedy and first lady Jackie Kennedy, and Carolyn, a fashion publicist. Details have yet to be disclosed about the series (Murphy recently revealed that its premiere date is on Feb. 14, 2026), but one thing’s for sure: People are not particularly taking a liking to the costumes.
This month, Murphy shared photos of actors Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon as JFK Jr. and Carolyn respectively, and fans have not been shy about voicing their opinions on their transformations, particularly Pidgeon’s.
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Amid the buzz, Vogue reached out to Carolyn’s hair colorist, Brad Johns, to get his take on whether or not the portrayal, specifically her signature blonde hair, was done right.
His response: “No one would believe that Carolyn in the ’90s would ever have that color from me. It’s too 2024.”
Bonds started working with Carolyn, a natural brunette, in 1996. As he remembers, achieving her golden blonde — or what he described as his “child-of-the-beach” hue — was something “we worked really hard to get right.”
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After taking her hair to a “toffee” shade, he used his famous “chunking” technique to highlight with precision. “I went in and put the highlight chunks in three foils around the front of her face, and then two underneath for when she wore her hair up.”
So when Johns first saw the interpreted version of Carolyn’s hair color, he thought it was “totally wrong, the opposite of what we were going for. If you show that on TV and fashion people see it, they are going to think, why the f— is she all ashed out with her hair only one color?”
He also joked: “Carolyn had beautiful hair. She was breathtaking and so hysterical. When she sees that color, she’s going to be swirling in heaven.”
Although Johns, who is now retired from the hair industry and works as a glass artist, told Vogue that Pidgeon’s hair is likely not wig, it has not been confirmed.
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In addition to being known for her hair, Carolyn was also famous for her effortless yet timeless fashion sense (she worked for Calvin Klein before marrying JFK Jr. in September 1996).
Sunita Kumar Nair, author of CBK: Carolyn Bessette Kennedy: A Life in Fashion, spoke to PEOPLE in 2023 about the secret to Carolyn’s style, including her love for going logo-less.
“Not many brands did that, and if they did, she would remove them,” she said. “It’s an indication of her confidence as a woman — she didn’t need a label that is visibly identifiable on her clothing to define who she was and was a crutch to support her style. There is a discipline to her approach and not wearing logos was one of them.”
The couple died in a tragic plane crash on July 16, 1999, with her sister Lauren Bessette.
