Ted Kennedy Confidantes Bash Matthew Perry Casting

Matthew Perry Photo by s_bukley / Shutterstock.com

Following Tuesday’s news that Matthew Perry would be playing Ted Kennedy in an upcoming miniseries, former aides to the late senator have come out to bash the casting announcement.

According to the Washington Post, several members of “Kennedyland”—the collection of former confidantes who’ve remained loyal to Kennedy—are not pleased with the ex-Friends star’s role in Reelz’s The Kennedys — After Camelot. The four-part event is a sequel to the network’s 2011 series, The Kennedys.

Jim Manley, a former spokesman for Kennedy who is now the senior director at QGA Public Affairs, had a particularly brutal burn for Perry and called the actor out for skipping the recent Friends reunion.

“He should have reconsidered his decision to boycott the Friends reunion, because I can’t imagine this is going to work out very well for what’s left of his career,” he told the Post.

Ouch.

Fans won’t get to see Perry’s take on Kennedy until After Camelot debuts next year. He’ll be joined by Katie Holmes, who will reprise her role from the original series as former first lady Jackie Kennedy Onassis.

It will be interesting to see how members of the Kennedy circle react to the other project that’s in the works about the former senator from Massachusetts.

Fifty Shades Of Grey director Sam Taylor-Johnson has reportedly been in discussions over directing Chappaquiddick, and upcoming film that will explore Kennedy’s 1969 scandal. Going out on a limb here, but we’re sure they’ll be delighted to revisit that controversy.