He’s on the defensive.
Superproducer Ryan Murphy is blasting critics of his upcoming present “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 instructed Selection in a narrative printed Thursday.
He was referring to the backlash when he posted a “first look” photograph of actors Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon in costume within the roles final week.
Critics derided the clothes as being “completely off” and looking out like “Zara,” and failing to seize the essence of the style icons.
“This is OFFENSIVE,” one indignant fan posted on Twitter, alongside the photograph of Pidgeon in costume.
One other critic blasted it as, “This is so Zara Basic 2015.”
“Her blonde hair is all wrong,” wrote one other particular 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,” one other particular person commented.
“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 photograph of the true Bessette-Kennedy.
Murphy instructed the outlet that the actors’ outfits weren’t items they’ll put on on the present. Slightly, they had been thrown collectively for lighting and colour checks – to get forward of the paparazzi set images when the manufacturing movies in New York Metropolis.
“There were comments like, ‘I hate that coat, Carolyn would never have worn that,’” Murphy stated.
“That was just a coat we threw on for color. 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 stated he had a 10-person “style advisory board” to place collectively Bessette-Kennedy’s look.
Bessette-Kennedy was well-known for her high-end vogue. The socialite died at age 33 in a airplane crash off the coast of Martha’s Winery in 1999. JFK Jr. died along with her in that crash, at age 38.
Murphy stated the manufacturing will use some clothes from the true 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 defined.
“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 general public response 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 stated.
Concerning the scrutiny on the primary look images, he stated, “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 touchdown in scorching water with the real-life topics of his reveals.
His 2024 present “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story” confronted criticism for suggesting an incestuous relationship between the notorious brothers who went to jail for the 1989 homicide of their mother and father, Jose and Kitty Menendez.
Erik, 53, spoke out in a press release and stated the “dishonest” present is full of “horrible and blatant lies” about himself and his brother Lyle, 56.
Some family members of Jeffrey Dahmer’s victims additionally spoke out in opposition to Murphy’s different Netflix collection “Dahmer – Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story.”
On Thursday, former President John F. Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg put Murphy on blast and stated 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, stated in an Instagram video, referencing the Murphy-produced present.
“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.”
“American Love Story” premieres on FX in February 2026.
