Yahoo News All About Kathleen ‘Kick’ Kennedy, Who May or May Not Be Ben Affleck’s Rumored Girlfriend
Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are no more, having officially filed for divorce last week. In the days since the news was announced, Lopez has filed to remove “Affleck” from her legal name, while Affleck himself has seemingly moved on with someone else.
Though the couple’s divorce announcement came on August 20—exactly two years after Lopez and Affleck’s Georgia wedding ceremony—their actual date of separation was April 26, 2024. In the four months since then, they’ve spent their summers on opposite ends of the country, and each found new places to live. According to People, Affleck has also been spotted with Kathleen Kennedy, the daughter of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
“Kick and Ben have been spending time together, but I’m not sure what’s happening,” one source told the publication, using Kennedy’s nickname, “Kick.” While the source is unsure how the pair first crossed paths, they divulged that “Kick’s celeb crush has always been Ben.”
Another insider, however, told People that “I don’t think they even know each other. There’s definitely nothing going on.” Adding fuel to the fire (or perhaps, quelling it), sources told TMZ that there was no romance brewing between Affleck and Kennedy, adding that they were “not dating” and “definitely not a couple.”
The he-said, she-said game continued as a Hollywood insider told Page Six that they spotted the duo at the Beverly Hills Hotel, as well as other hotspots. Meanwhile, yet another source told People that Affleck and Kennedy have been “spending time together” since late spring—shortly after his official separation from Lopez.
So, who is Kathleen Kennedy? Read ahead to learn everything you need to know about Affleck’s potential partner.
Kick is Robert’s eldest daughter, and the second of his six children.
She and her brother, Robert “Bobby” Kennedy III, were born while their father Robert was married to his first wife, Emily Ruth Black. Their younger siblings include Conor Kennedy, Kyra Kennedy, William “Finn” Kennedy, and Aidan Kennedy, whom Robert shares with his second wife, Mary Kathleen Richardson.
Kathleen’s nickname “Kick” comes from her great-aunt Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy, who was 28 when she died in a 1948 plane crash.
In 2012, Kick told Town & Country that she thought she was “similar” to her late relative.” I always thought Dad and I were the same person, but I got fascinated by Kick a few years ago,” she explained. “She was fun and social and a performer in many ways. Of course, I don’t think my parents would ever call my own death divine retribution,” Kick joked at the time. “Well, maybe if I became a Republican.”
Kathleen may have a passion for partying.
A source described Kick to People as a “partier,” adding that she “likes to have a good time.” During her college years at Stanford University, where she studied history and theater, Kennedy climbed Mount Kilimanjaro with Jessica Biel and went white water rafting in the Grand Canyon with her dad, per Page Six.
She’s an actress and activist.
After studying theater at Stanford, Kathleen continued her acting studies at the Lee Strasberg Institute in West Hollywood. She’s since taken on small roles throughout the years, playing herself in Gossip Girl and joining her stepmom Cheryl Hines on Curb Your Enthusiasm. Most recently, Kick had the role of “lazy tourist” in the 2021 film Fear and Loathing in Aspen.
In addition to her acting career, Kennedy is an activist who shares her father’s passion for “water issues,” telling Resident in 2014 that she “knew what PCPs were” before learning how to tie her shoes.
Kennedy used to date Paul Simon’s son.
From 2013 to 2014, Kick was romantically linked to Paul Simon’s son Harper. After that, she went on to date billionaire bank heir Matthew Mellon for a few months, until his death in 2018 at age 54. At the time, People reported Kennedy was “heartbroken” and “shocked.”
You Might Also Like
