Netflix to take a crack at capturing the Kennedy dynasty

So far, the streamer has only announced that Michael Fassbender will play patriarch Joe Kennedy, Sr.

Netflix to take a crack at capturing the Kennedy dynasty

Netflix is asking what it can do for the Kennedy family. The streamer has officially greenlit Kennedy, a scripted drama that aims to “reveal the intimate lives, loves, rivalries and tragedies that shaped the most iconic dynasty in modern history, and helped create the world we live in today,” per its logline. Beginning in the 1930s, the eight-episode first season “charts the improbable ascent of Joe and Rose Kennedy and their nine children, including rebellious second son Jack, who struggles to escape the shadow of his golden boy older brother.”

If this sounds a bit like an American version of The Crown, Netflix reportedly had the same idea. The series, adapted from Fredrik Logevall’s book, JFK: Coming Of Age In The American Century, 1917-1956, has been in the works at the streamer for almost two years now, Variety reports. When the series was announced back in 2023, sources said Netflix saw it as being in the same vein as the popular show about the British monarchy. Whether that means Kennedy will occasionally refresh its cast as its central family gets older is unclear, but for now, all we know is that Michael Fassbender will be playing Kennedy patriarch Joe Kennedy, Sr. No other cast has been announced as of this writing. 

Castle Rock‘s Sam Shaw is stepping in as showrunner and executive producer. “The story of the Kennedys is the closest we have to American mythology—somewhere between Shakespeare and The Bold And The Beautiful,” he told Netflix’s Tudum. “But Fredrik Logevall’s stunning, nuanced biography pulls a veil on the human strivings and burdens behind the myth, revealing as much about our present moment, how we got here and where we’re going, as about the Kennedys themselves. I’m thrilled to be able to explore this saga of a family and a world in transition with Eric Roth, Thomas Vinterberg and our incredible band of artists and partners, at a moment when our past feels urgently present.”

Netflix isn’t the only streamer wading into the Kennedy saga right now. Ryan Murphy is also working on the first season of his Love Story anthology, which aims to capture the romance of John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette. Love Story will premiere February 2026 on FX, but it has already stoked the ire of John F. Kennedy Jr.’s nephew (and President Kennedy’s grandson), Jack Schlossberg. In June, Schlossberg claimed that Murphy hadn’t consulted the family before creating the show—something that’s emerged as a pattern for the prolific TV creator—and was now “profiting off” his uncle’s legacy in a “grotesque way.” The two have been publicly sparring since. Hopefully Netflix went through the proper channels to create Kennedy; we’ll see what sort of reaction it garners from the surviving family members when its first season premieres.

 
Join the discussion...