'American Love Story's Carolyn Bessette Looks Just Like the Real-Life Wife of JFK Jr.

Fans got a first look at the enduring style icon.

Key Points

• Ryan Murphy shared a first look at American Love Story's Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy and John F. Kennedy Jr. on Friday, June 13.
• In the photos, Sarah Pidgeon looks just like JFK Jr.'s fashion icon wife with blonde hair and a very Carolyn Bessette-coded outfit.
• Paul Kelly also replicated one of JFK Jr.'s most iconic outfits.

Fans are finally getting a first look at American Love Story’s Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy. As producer Ryan Murphy prepares to bring Bessette-Kennedy and husband John F. Kennedy Jr.’s whirlwind romance to the silver screen next year, anticipation has been high following the announcement that Sarah Pidgeon and Paul Kelly will be playing the society power couple. Now, Murphy is giving fans a sneak preview of his Carolyn and JFK Jr. all dressed up in character—and the photos are making fans do a double take.

“Here are some stills from our LOVE STORY camera test,” the American Horror Story producer wrote on Instagram alongside a photo of Pidgeon and Kelly. “We started shooting this week in New York City and can’t wait until you see the romantic and tragic love story between America’s prince, JFK Jr., and fashion icon Carolyn Bessette—out Valentine’s Day week of 2026.”

It's the first time fans are getting to see the normally brunette Pidgeon as the blonde ‘90s style icon. Showing off a platinum blonde dye job, the Tony Award-nominated actress channeled the late publicist with subtle glam, a knee-length camel coat, a black mockneck top, and fitted black capris that hit just a few inches above her ankles. A pair of black kitten heels and a black Hermès Kelly bag finished off her Bessette-Kennedy-inspired outfit. 

Meanwhile, Kelly looked just like the late lawyer wearing a dark gray suit and a red patterned tie paired with red-tinted oval sunglasses. He also replicated one of JFK Jr.’s most iconic looks—a gray beret paired with jeans, an oversized shirt, and a dark vest—in another photo.

Murphy revealed that he’d cast the pair after “over a thousand actors auditioned” for each of the roles, calling them the “perfect choices.” Fans will have to wait until next February to watch the couple’s love story unfold, complete with a look into the tabloid speculation and complicated family dynamics that plagued their highly-publicized romance, but Pidgeon isn’t the only one debuting a major hair change for the role. Naomi Watts will be going brunette to play John F. Kennedy Jr.’s mom Jackie Kennedy Onassis. Meanwhile, Grace Gummer will play JFK Jr.’s older sister Caroline Kennedy, while Sydney Lemmon will play Carolyn’s sister Lauren Bessette.