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Celebrities

Who is Rory Kennedy, and what happened to her wedding after JFK Jr’s death?

STORYSumnima Kandangwa
Rory Kennedy at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in January, in Park City, Utah. Photo: Getty Images
Rory Kennedy at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in January, in Park City, Utah. Photo: Getty Images
Fame and celebrity

John F. Kennedy Jr and Carolyn Bessette – the subject of FX’s Love Story – were on their way to Rory’s wedding when their plane crashed in 1999

In 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr and his wife Carolyn Bessette, the subjects of Ryan Murphy’s hit series Love Story, died during a plane crash. Kennedy was piloting the private plane, and crashed it into the Atlantic Ocean. The couple and Bessette’s older sister Lauren, who also passed away in the accident, had been en route to Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, to attend the wedding of Rory Kennedy.
Rory Kennedy in July 1999. Photo: AP
Rory Kennedy in July 1999. Photo: AP
The youngest daughter of Ethel and Robert Kennedy, Rory was set to tie the knot with writer Mark Bailey on July 17, 1999. What was meant to be the filmmaker’s big day quickly turned into a period of mourning, and her nuptials were postponed. Rory and Bailey wed a month later and have since welcomed three children.
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Here’s everything you need to know about JFK Jr’s cousin, Rory Kennedy.

She’s an award-winning filmmaker

Rory Kennedy, the youngest daughter of Ethel Kennedy and the late Robert Kennedy, in 1999. Photo: AP
Rory Kennedy, the youngest daughter of Ethel Kennedy and the late Robert Kennedy, in 1999. Photo: AP

Rory Kennedy was born in December 1968 to parents Ethel and Robert Kennedy. She was the youngest of their 11 children, and born six months after her father was fatally shot and killed in June 1968.

Her activism started early in life: as a teenager, she was arrested for joining an anti-Apartheid protest outside the South African embassy. She went on to study at Brown University. She has since directed and produced over 30 documentaries covering topics from the Vietnam War, the torture of Iraqis by American military, AIDs and more. She has won a Primetime Emmy Award and received an Oscar nomination.

What happened to Rory Kennedy’s wedding?

Rory Kennedy with her then fiancé Mark Bailey as they await news on the fate of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. Photo: Reuters
Rory Kennedy with her then fiancé Mark Bailey as they await news on the fate of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. Photo: Reuters
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