Before JFK Jr., Paul Anthony Kelly Already Knew His Way Around a Camera
Paul Anthony Kelly may now be best known as the man who stepped into John F. Kennedy Jr.’s very famous shoes, but before Hollywood finally came knocking, he had already spent years knowing exactly what to do when somebody pointed a camera at him.
The Canadian model-turned-actor brings that history straight back to the surface for VMAN Fall/Winter 2026, fronting the issue in the editorial “Paul Presses Play” and getting lensed by fashion power duo Luigi & Iango.
Discover More
Paul Anthony Kelly presses play on his fashion roots.
The Love Story breakout returns to the modeling world for VMAN Fall/Winter 2026, photographed by Luigi & Iango after a career spent moving between fashion and acting.
Some links may be affiliate links. INYIM may earn from qualifying purchases.
Kelly’s sudden Hollywood profile can make the acting story feel like it happened overnight, but the road was much longer than that. Before landing his breakout role, he spent more than a decade modeling while continuing to chase acting work, with fashion jobs stretching across brands including Vivienne Westwood, Brooks Brothers, Perry Ellis, Bonobos and John Varvatos.
Then came FX’s Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette, the Ryan Murphy-produced limited series that finally put Kelly at the center of the frame as JFK Jr. opposite Sarah Pidgeon as Carolyn Bessette.
The role turned the longtime model into one of 2026’s breakout television faces, but this VMAN story is a nice reminder that posing, moving and giving a photographer something to work with were never new tricks for him.
And with Luigi & Iango behind the lens, there is nowhere to hide anyway. The duo’s glossy, high-contrast style has become a familiar language across VMAN and V Magazine, built around strong silhouettes, direct portraiture and images that make a face feel almost sculptural.
Kelly fits right into that world. The difference now is that the audience already knows the actor behind the model stare.
Paul Anthony Kelly for VMAN Fall/Winter 2026
More from the supplied “Paul Presses Play” image set, photographed by Luigi & Iango for VMAN Fall/Winter 2026.
So yes, Ryan Murphy and Hollywood may have made Paul Anthony Kelly a recognizable actor. VMAN simply handed him back the job he already knew how to do.
Sources: VMAN; The Fashionisto; FX. Photography: Luigi & Iango.
