The Verdict on Carolyn Bessette’s ‘Love Story’ Style in Ryan Murphy’s Latest

The verdict on Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s style in Ryan Murphy’s “Love Story.” Fashion MVPs from the Super Bowl, Olympics Opening Ceremony and Oscar Nominees Luncheon. Inside the must-see “What a Wonderful World” video art extravaganza at the Variety Arts Theatre in DTLA and Pomellato brings the sparkle to Sunset Tower.

The Calvin Klein Opportunity in Ryan Murphy’s ’90s-Nostalgic “Love Story”

I screened nearly all of Ryan Murphy’s latest limited series, “Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette,” which drops today, on FX/Hulu, starring Sarah Pidgeon and Paul Anthony Kelly as the star-crossed lovers. And it turns out, the costume kerfuffle that erupted over the summer was much ado about nothing.

To recap, after Murphy released screen test photos of Pidgeon, fashion pundits slammed the costumes, with some likening them to fast-fashion copies of the beloved icon’s high-fashion looks. Critics also questioned the historical accuracy, even quibbling over the size of the Hermès bag she was carrying. It was a full-blown catastrophe.

At first, Murphy went on the defensive, explaining that the looks were just for screen tests. He later brought on a new costume designer, Rudy Mance, from “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans,” who found a collector in Canada with many of the exact pieces from the brands Bessette wore.

Well, now the show is out, and not only is it likable, they got the looks right. It’s ’90s New York nostalgia at its finest, with all the haunts (Nell’s, Tunnel), tunes (TLC, Blind Melon), cigarettes and angsty 20something romantic storylines. And the clothes … Are they going to win any awards? Doubtful. But they get the job done and will probably end up being influential all over again.

There are lots of scenes set in the Calvin Klein showroom where Bessette worked, and the set design perfectly captures the designer’s persnickety taste. Bessette’s wardrobe also reflects the sensual minimalism she embodied at the brand, from the opening look — a just-right clingy black button-down shirt, flared khakis, oval ’90s sunglasses, the exact beige Prada sandals she owned and a perfectly aged Birkin 40.

There’s lots to love throughout, from her date-night slip dresses to her perfectly cut, sexy tank tops and string bikini underwear, Yohji Yamamoto blazers, pencil skirts and square-toed loafers, and a dupe of the famed Narciso Rodriguez wedding gown, of course. If there’s a quibble, it’s the quality of the fabrics used — or at least how they appear onscreen. And Pidgeon’s blonde hair is off by a shade or two.

Daryl Hannah — perfectly played by Dree Hemingway — and her rich bohemian style are also fun to behold. Mance also nails JFK Jr.’s commuter-prep aesthetic and Jackie Kennedy’s regal richness.

If the powers that be at Calvin Klein, which is in the throes of a next-gen rebrand, have any sense, they’ve figured out how to capitalize on what will surely be increased brand heat from the show, which tracks the rise of Kate Moss, the fragrance Obsession, the famed Bruce Weber–shot underwear ads and much more of the brand’s Nineties heyday. Calvin really should have dressed Pidgeon for the New York premiere — but Chanel did instead.

Super Bowl, Olympics and Oscar Nominee Fashion MVPs

It’s been quite a week for sports, from the Olympic Opening Ceremony in design hub Milan, Italy, to the Super Bowl in tech hub Santa Clara, Calif.

Bad Bunny, no slouch when it comes to making daring style statements, played it cool for his Apple Music Super Bowl halftime show, choosing a custom white suit with an athletic twist by Zara. He looked and sounded incredible, but there’s been discussion about his decision to support the Spanish fast-fashion giant.

Bad Bunny Shares Stage with Zara and Adidas

Eco Age, the London-based sustainability consultancy and communications agency, posted on Instagram: “There’s no denying that Bad Bunny’s performance was powerful and much-needed. He once again used his platform to celebrate his Puerto Rican heritage and champion love over hate. But fashion cannot be separated from the systems of discrimination, exploitation and erasure that run deep within it. Fast fashion, an industry built on injustice, undermines the very values of culture and identity that were being celebrated, with fast-fashion brands persistently appropriating cultural designs and contributing to the erasure of cultural traditions and narratives.”

I can see that point of view, and there are certainly plenty of worthy independent Latin American designers who could have been spotlighted, among them Mexican American designer Willy Chavarria, who showed his latest collection in Paris last month, and Patricio Campillo, who is on this week’s New York Fashion Week schedule. Dominican American designer Raul Lopez of Luar created the custom blue flamenco-style dress worn by Lady Gaga during her performance, while Puerto Rican designer Jomary Segarra crafted knitwear for the dancers.

Bad Bunny, a longtime Adidas collaborator, used the event to debut his all-white BadBo. He also wore a $75,000 Audemars Piguet Royal Oak yellow-gold-and-malachite watch for the performance.

The Adidas BadBo quickly sold out; and Zara got $3.1 million in media impact value from the placement, according to Launchmetrics. I reached out to the brand to see whether a capsule collection inspired by Bad Bunny’s look might be forthcoming, but a representative said no — it was created just for the show. Still, the fast-fashion label has spent years trying to elevate its image with higher-priced collections and collaborations. This was the pinnacle.

Armani’s Tailored Tribute, Ralph Lauren’s Sublime Americana

The 2024 Paris Summer Olympics may have been the most fashionable Games in history, driven by luxury group LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton’s lead sponsorship, which brought high fashion to the ceremonies, including a runway show on the Seine and a tribute to the Louis Vuitton trunk beamed around the globe.

Fellow fashion capital, Milan, answered with a more subtle display and no lead fashion sponsor. During the opening ceremony, there was a tribute to the late Italian fashion giant Giorgio Armani, however, with 60 models walking three runways in Armani suits in the colors of the Italian flag.

The sportier line EA7 Emporio Armani was the official outfitter of the Italian Olympic team, including an oversized gray bomber jacket with “Italia” spelled out on the back. Similar looks are being worn by Italian athletes on the podium. The flag bearers also wore Armani outfits from the Fall 2025 collection to carry the Olympic flag to the stage.

Since we’re talking about media impact value, Armani’s MIV from the exposure was $2.5 million, while Ralph Lauren — whose Team U.S.A. Opening Ceremony outfits may be the best yet from the brand’s 10-time Olympics partnership — scored $8.4 million. The winter-white toggle coats, tailored trousers and Fair-Isle American flag sweaters are so good.

Mariah Carey and the Cavalli Renaissance

Mariah Carey brought the Roberto Cavalli renaissance to the Opening Ceremony with her diva-licious performance look: a custom bustier gown with mermaid train by Cavalli creative director Fausto Puglisi.

The Italian brand, founded in the 1970s, peaked in the early 2000s, with its animal-patterned, rhinestone-studded, curve-hugging aesthetic embraced by Jennifer Lopez, Britney Spears, Whitney Houston and others.

Now, it’s in the midst of a full-on fashion revival, beginning with Taylor Swift wearing several custom Cavalli looks during her record-breaking Eras tour, followed by a Skims swimwear collaboration that introduced the brand to a new generation of customers last summer. On the business side, Cavalli has a new partnership with London-based fashion incubator Tomorrow to increase international distribution and awareness — which brings us to Hollywood and the Olympics. In recent days, Doechi wore a Cavalli gown to the Grammys, and Margot Robbie chose a vintage Cavalli minidress for a stop on her epic Bronte-core “Wuthering Heights” press tour. That’s amore.

Oscar Nominees’ Top Tailoring

It’s tricky to dress fashionably for a luncheon without looking like you’re doing the walk of shame from last night’s party.

At Tuesday’s Oscar Nominees’ Luncheon, the answer was stylish tailoring. The women’s suit-and-tie trend has been gaining steam for a while, originating with Anthony Vaccarello’s Saint Laurent Spring 2025 women’s runway show, which revived the brand’s namesake revolutionary tailoring that changed women’s fashion in the late 1960s and reverberated in the power dressing of the 1980s and now the 2020s.

Thom Browne has made the suit and tie the centerpiece of his brand, and I liked the way Best Supporting Actress nominee for “Weapons,” Amy Madigan, made his aesthetic look looser. Best Song nominee for “KPop Demon Hunters,” Ejae, looked fresh in her Spring 2026 Amiri double-breasted blazer, polka-dot silk shirt and lace cami. Meanwhile, “Hamnet” production designer nominee Alice Felton impressed with a chocolate-brown-and-pale-blue combo and sweet floral embroidery on the jacket lapels.

DTLA’s Video Art Experience Has Hollywood History

The historic Variety Arts Theatre in downtown L.A. has come to life once again with the opening of “What a Wonderful World: An Audiovisual Poem.”

Billed as a “layered portrait of humanity through flickering images,” the exhibition is an incredible experience of 45 works that unfold across six hollowed-out floors. Visitors are invited to wander in no particular order, taking a seat on the battered furniture and theater seating strewn throughout to ponder the meaning of it all, and the connections between past and present, narrative and place.

The ornate Italian Renaissance Revival building dates back to the 1920s and has hosted radio shows, live theater, and cultural events with the likes of Al Jolson, Will Rogers, Charlie Chaplin and Eleanor Roosevelt. The video works go back even further in time, making for interesting pairings and commentary.

On the fifth floor, Méliès’ 1902 sci-fi fantasy “A Trip to the Moon” is striking juxtaposed with glimpses of downtown L.A.’s “Blade Runner”–like scene of neon lights, the Crypto.com Arena, and airplanes flying overhead.

Jacolby Satterwhite’s “Shrines” (2020) features post-human avatars with screens embedded in their bodies, dancing to throbbing electronic music, recalling the Variety Arts Theatre’s days as a techno club in the 1990s. Nearby, an excerpt of Charles Reisner’s 1928 film “Steamboat Bill,” starring Buster Keaton, pays homage to the building’s vaudeville roots.

In the main floor auditorium, Arthur Jafa’s arresting “Apex” (2013) pulses with snippets of music videos, celebrity appearances, and news events, depicting Black cultural achievement in America alongside images of brutality. 

Presented by the Berlin-based Julia Stoschek Foundation and edited by curator Udo Kittelmann, the show brings together more than a century of moving-image culture, including contemporary works by Marina Abramović, Doug Aitken, Lu Yang, and Jacolby Satterwhite, alongside historic ones by Walt Disney, Luis Buñuel, and others.

Aitken, Jafa, Paul McCarthy, Christoph Waltz, Alexandra Grant, Bettina Korek, and David and Mary Martin were among those who came out to inaugurate the exhibition Friday night. The crowd flocked to the basement — visitors should too.

It is chock full of enthralling installations in every nook and cranny, including Robert Boyd’s mind-blowing four-channel video series “Xanadu,” which presents footage of agents of chaos including Charles Manson, David Koresh and Osama bin Laden as a commentary on violence, religion, and spectacle, set under a disco ball with dance mixes of Madonna, Olivia Newton-John, and more. It’s all a trip in the most thought-provoking and indeed wonderful way.

“What a Wonderful World,” through March 20 at the Variety Arts Theatre, 940 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, Calif.

Dinner With Diamonds

Stars and tastemakers, including Jane Fonda, Kerry Washington, Mindy Kaling, and Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, came out Tuesday night for Pomellato’s splashy dinner with diamonds at The Sunset Tower.

The female trailblazers, all dripping in jewelry, represented the Italian brand’s legacy of women’s empowerment and strides in sustainability, with Pomellato having achieved 100 percent sustainable gold sourcing and committed to using eco-friendly packaging, among other initiatives.

During cocktails, guests browsed pieces from Pomellato’s most iconic collections, including the colorful Nudo range, the modern-looking Iconica and Catene collections and the brand’s latest high jewelry, before sitting down at two large tables for dinner and ice cream sundaes.

Beyond the jewelry, the event spotlighted the Pomellato for Women platform, the brand’s global initiative advocating against domestic violence and partnering with nonprofit organizations to support victims. “Pomellato has always been crafted with women in mind — bold, independent and unapologetically themselves,” said Sabina Belli, CEO of Pomellato.

With Pomellato based in Milan, it was only natural that dinner conversation drifted to the Milano Cortino Olympics. Actress Emanuela Postacchini, wearing a black lace slip dress by Elisabetta Franchi and an incredible pavé diamond and chain-link Pomellato Iconica necklace, was hyped up about figure skating — like all of us, including Quad God Ilia Malinin. I wonder what luxury brand is going to snap him up?

Forwarded this newsletter?
Subscribe here to get WrapStyle directly every week!

Have a news story for our readers? Please email booth.moore@thewrap.com

Interested in partnership opportunities? Please email Alex.vonBargen@thewrap.com

The post The Verdict on Carolyn Bessette’s ‘Love Story’ Style in Ryan Murphy’s Latest appeared first on TheWrap.