Julia Fox has insisted her Halloween costume paid tribute to the “extraordinary bravery” of Jackie Kennedy after being criticised for being “insensitive”.
Julia Fox has insisted her Halloween costume paid tribute to the “extraordinary bravery” of Jackie Kennedy.
The 35-year-old star faced criticism after stepping out to Julio Torres’ party in a blood-spattered pink skirt suit and hat with white gloves, which mimicked the then-First Lady’s outfit when her husband, President John F. Kennedy, was assassinated in November 1963, but she has defended herself amid allegations of being “insensitive”.
Sharing photos of herself in the outfit, Julia wrote on Instagram: “I’m dressed as Jackie Kennedy in the pink suit. Not as a costume, but as a statement. When her husband was assassinated, she refused to change out of her blood-stained clothes, saying, ‘I want them to see what they’ve done.’ The image of the delicate pink suit splattered with blood is one of the most haunting juxtapositions in modern history. Beauty and horror. Poise and devastation.
“Her decision not to change clothes, even after being encouraged to, was an act of extraordinary bravery. It was performance, protest, and mourning all at once. A woman weaponizing image and grace to expose brutality. It’s about trauma, power, and how femininity itself is a form of resistance. Long live Jackie O.”
Jack Schlossberg, the grandson of John and Jackie – who died in 1994 aged 64 – was among those to criticise Julia.
He wrote on X: “Julia Fox glorifying political violence is disgusting, desperate and dangerous. I’m sure her late grandmother would agree.”
Jackie was photographed wearing the clothes in the immediate aftermath of her husband’s death, standing with Lyndon B. Johnson, who was then vice president.
Historian Steve Gillon previously told People magazine in 2022: “They actually had another dress laid out for her to put on and she refused.
“She went out in her blood-stained suit and stood next to Lyndon Johnson. Despite these horrible circumstances, she was willing to stand for a photo because she understood what it meant for the nation to have continuity in government.
“She understood that she had a role to play in helping the nation transition to a new president.”
According to The New York Times, the outfit, including her shoes, handbag and stockings, were “blood-covered and folded in a towel” following the fatal shooting.
The items are preserved at the National Archives and Records Administration’s facility in Maryland.
Julia Fox defends controversial Jackie Kennedy Halloween costume
