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Daryl Hannah slams 'Love Story' portrayal despite letter from actress who played her

Dree Hemingway portrayed her in the FX series

Daryl Hannah criticized her portrayal in 'Love Story'

MARCH 10, 2026 9:51 PM EDTMAR 10, 2026, 9:51 PM EDT

Daryl Hannah has been one of the most controversial parts of "Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette." The actress was one of JFK Jr.'s most notorious partners, with the two dating before his marriage to Bessette. Hannah plays a key part in the series, and is portrayed by Dree Hemingway, who reportedly sent her a letter before her portrayal.

Dree Hemingway plays Daryl Hannah in the FX series

“I really just fell in love with her as a human being,” said Hemingway in an interview with Nylon. She said the note was more of a thank-you note instead of an opportunity to meet her and learn how to play her.

“That was really the note, and just not like ‘Hey, I want to meet you or talk to you,'” she said. “Just, like, ‘It was really an honor of my lifetime to be able to portray you and research you.'”

Hemingway revealed that Hannah never responded to her, something that she completely understands. “I also think [she needs] her own time,” she said. “The show’s just come out; I’m sure there’s a lot to digest there and stuff like that.”

She also said that her depiction of Hannah is fictionalized. “We are not exactly portraying her or how something went down. There’s a fiction involved in all of this," she said.

Daryl Hannah's reaction to the show

John F. Kennedy Jr. and Daryl Hannah dated for five years in the late 80s and early '90s

Earlier this week, Hannah published an op-ed in the New York Times criticizing "Love Story" and the way in which she was portrayed.

"I have long believed that engaging with distortion often amplifies it. But a recent tragedy-exploiting television series about John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette features a character using my name and presents her as me. The choice to present her as irritating, self-absorbed, whiny, and inappropriate was no accident," she wrote.

Hannah has rarely addressed her relationship with Kennedy with the public, but the two were involved on-and-off for five years after meeting in the early 80's while vacationing in St. Martin. The pair reconnected at the wedding of a mutual friend in 1988, beginning their long relationship.

Two years after their breakup, Kennedy married Bessette.