Cheryl Hines says she understood that marrying Robert F. Kennedy Jr. meant joining a famously complex family — but the past few years have tested those bonds in painful ways.
In a conversation on Elizabeth Vargas Reports on NewsNation, the Curb Your Enthusiasm star opened up about how the Kennedy family dynamic has shifted since her husband joined President Donald Trump’s administration as secretary of health and human services.
The Kennedy name has long been synonymous with Democratic politics, so Bobby’s decision to align himself with the MAGA movement — just a year after seeking the Democratic presidential nomination — sent shockwaves through his relatives. Several family members, including some of his siblings and his cousin Caroline Kennedy, publicly condemned his choice.
Five of his siblings — Kerry, Kathleen, Courtney, Chris and Rory — issued a joint statement calling his decision to side with Trump “a betrayal of the values that our father and our family hold most dear,” adding, “It is a sad ending to a sad story.”
Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of President John F. Kennedy, went further in a letter to senators ahead of RFK Jr.’s confirmation hearings, calling him a “predator” who is “addicted to attention and power.”
When Elizabeth Vargas asked Hines if she feels angry with members of the Kennedy family for not supporting her husband, she didn’t hesitate: “Sometimes, yes.”
At the same time, Hines said she recognizes that, given the family’s size and history — and the tragedies woven into their public life — there’s room for complexity.
“It’s a big family,” she said. “There are a lot of Kennedys, and they all have different relationships with each other and different relationships with Bobby.”
Describing the period when Bobby joined Trump’s Cabinet, she admitted, “It was a difficult time. I know that some of [the Kennedys] were part of the Biden administration or, you know, working somehow in that administration. I understood that. But I was really, really disappointed to see a few of them really speak so disrespectfully about Bobby.”
“I’ve really loved them through the years, and still love them, but I can’t help but to think of some of them differently, because I didn’t respect what they did,” she added.
Asked whether she has felt distanced from Hollywood because of her husband’s politics, Hines said the reaction has been mixed.
“There are a lot of people who have been great to me who reach out to me,” she explained. “They range from, ‘Oh my gosh, this is crazy, are you okay?’ to, ‘I love what your husband’s doing and I’m behind you guys a hundred percent.’ And there are people in the entertainment industry that do feel like that.”
Despite coverage suggesting she’s grown apart from Curb co-star Larry David, Hines said that, in many cases, politics are discussed on a “subject-by-subject” basis rather than as a total dealbreaker.
“I think that’s a pretty healthy attitude to have about everything,” she said. “I think it’s better to take a step back and say, ‘Well, let’s look at what’s on the table’… So there’s a range, you know.”
Still, she acknowledged that not everyone is comfortable with her husband’s role.
“I do have a few friends that I know are just very upset by even Bobby being in the administration,” Hines admitted. “It’s very upsetting to them, and I understand that, I respect it. I haven’t had any, I haven’t had any falling outs. I haven’t had a moment of somebody storming out the door.”
