I totally forgot that this was announced three years ago, but LaineyGossip pointed out that there’s a big update. In 2021, Ryan Murphy announced a new project which would go alongside his “American Story” anthologies – American Crime Story, American Horror Story, etc – and the new one would be American Love Story. Murphy wanted the first American Love Story to be John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. We hadn’t heard much of anything about it, and then Variety had this update:
The “American Story” franchise at FX is still expanding. Executive producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson, who have been working with Ryan Murphy since “American Crime Story” premiered in 2016 (and served as executive producers on “Pose”), confirmed that “American Love Story,” which recounts the story of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette, will be moving forward at FX.
“We’re very much intending to [tell that story],” Jacobson told Variety during a recent interview.
“We have great scripts on that. We’re trying to figure out when it’ll land,” Simpson added. “It is a story that really resonates right now. It’s amazing. A lot of younger women are looking to her as sort of a representational icon of a certain period of time that’s really fascinating, and hopefully, we’ll be able to bring that to the screen soon.”
The new series was initially announced in 2021, along with “Studio 54: American Crime Story,” a potential fourth installment of “ACS” following “People vs. OJ Simpson,” “The Assassination of Gianni Versace” and “Impeachment.” However, there’s no update on “Studio 54” — and it doesn’t sound likely.
Sidenote: it’s funny to me that Ryan waited long enough that his good friend Gwyneth Paltrow has aged out of playing Carolyn. God knows, Gwyneth did the most to imitate Carolyn Bessette back in the day. To be fair, a lot of women did and a lot of women still do. Carolyn was a style icon and the closest thing Americans have to a “princess.” But Gwyneth’s copykeening was next-level, truly.
So, let’s dreamcast! LaineyGossip’s suggestions were Callum Turner for John-John and Vanessa Kirby or Anya Taylor-Joy for Carolyn. I’ll admit, I see the vision with Anya-as-Carolyn and I absolutely think Anya could pull off Carolyn’s je ne sais quoi. The internet is dreamcasting Elizabeth Debicki and Jacob Elordi… and I hate that. Debicki has Carolyn’s lithe, blonde physicality, but it’s too much after Debicki played Princess Diana. Elordi would also be awful as John. Weirdly, I feel like John is probably going to be easy to cast, even though no modern actor will be able to do it. They’ll probably just get some handsome dark-haired guy. I would be happy with Morgan Spector, actually? But the Carolyn casting will lead to some MAJOR fights.
I’d just like to throw a few more names out there for Carolyn: Saoirse Ronan, Elle Fanning and Haley Bennett. I think Elle and Saoirse would both nail it, and while Haley doesn’t strictly look like Carolyn, I just think she’s a good enough actress to pull it off. And if acting doesn’t matter, I actually think Hailey Bieber could do it. My other controversial opinion is that I do think the casting should be limited to American actors as well. I don’t want to see John portrayed by a guy trying to hide his posh British accent.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images, John Harrington / Avalon, Look Press Agency/Look Press / Avalon..