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Vogue
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Sarah Pidgeon—Ryan Murphy's CBK—Has Actually Gone Blonde
It was the camera test that launched a thousand think pieces (not to mention TikToks, Instagram carousels, and a pair of stories on this very website): On June 13, Ryan Murphy's production company shared images from his upcoming American Love Story series, giving the world a first glimpse at Paul Anthony Kelly as John F. Kennedy Jr. and Sarah Pidegon as Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy. BrosNYC / BACKGRID The internet's reaction was mixed. While some on social media scrutinized the costuming, Bessette-Kennedy's colorist Brad Johns suggested to Vogue that Pidgeon, who is a natural brunette, had been turned a shade of blonde that felt 'too 2024.' In the wake of the backlash, Murphy went on the record with Variety, sharing that a style advisory board had been put in place to make sure the show got everything right (and that Pidgeon's blonde in those shots was, in fact, a wig). Then, last night, almost a month to the day since the test shots were released, Pidgeon appeared at the Los Angeles premiere of her new film, I Know What You Did Last Summer, with a surprise: a new dye job. No Daenerys Targaryen coloring here. In New York City on March the Los Angeles primere of I Know What You Did Last Summer on July colorist Kari Hill has confirmed to Vogue exclusively that this time, it's not a wig. 'Going from dark brown to blonde is always a journey,' Hill says, noting that she used Schwarzkopf Professional products to get the look. 'The transformation took approximately 18 hours in total, spread over two days to ensure the health and integrity of Sarah's hair throughout the process.' (When reached for a statement on the change, Ryan Murphy declined to comment.) Hill describes Pidgeon's new color as 'a soft, natural root that melts into multi-tonal blondes, with buttery, golden highlights and subtle lowlights woven throughout to create a beautifully blended, sunlit effect.' And buttery it is—an important hue in the world of Bessette-Kennedy and Johns, who made butter his signature shade.
Vogue
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Carolyn Besette Kennedy's Colorist on Those Ryan Murphy Images
When Ryan Murphy Productions dropped the first teaser images for the upcoming American Love Story, the world… well, had opinions. The new spin-off anthology series tells the story of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy's romance, and for many, the images left a lot to be desired. Specifically, actor Sarah Pidgeon's transformation into Carolyn, which included almost Gwen Stefani-level blonde hair. And while the Internet immediately critiqued Pidgeon's hair transformation, I wanted to go straight to the source to see how right or wrong it really was: hair colorist Brad Johns, who was known for creating Carolyn's still-talked-about blonde in the 1990s. Johns was the colorist of the era. His clients included everyone from Kate Moss and artist Cindy Sherman, to New York City socialites and fashion insiders, including, of course, Bessette. In a 1996 Vogue September issue feature, then beauty editor Amy Astley called Johns 'Golden Boy, the Founding Father of Chunking… the Color Czar.' The next year, Johns opened his eponymous salon on Fifth Avenue with eight perpetually-filled chairs. In a three-page spread from Allure's September 1998 issue, writer Martha Barnette described his signature 'chunking' technique, which became popular after he did it on Christy Turlington. It's 'basically grabbing handfuls of hair and highlighting them,' Barnette wrote. Before I reached out, Johns wasn't even aware that American Love Story was happening and hadn't seen the images. After they popped up in his inbox (courtesy of a few screenshots I sent), his ruling was blunt: 'No one would believe that Carolyn in the '90s would ever have that color from me. It's too 2024.' After that, we decided to get on the phone and chat more about Bessette's hair color, their relationship, and more. First, I ask Johns to describe Bessette's exact color to me, something he says 'we worked really hard to get right.' Bessette's hair was a natural light brown, but he took her to what he describes as a 'toffee' shade. From there, it was all about his signature chunking technique. 'I went in and put the highlight chunks in three foils around the front of her face, and then two underneath for when she wore her hair up.'
