Amid reports that Cheryl Hines and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “have barely spoken” in the weeks since news broke of an alleged affair involving him and a much younger political reporter, sources are now saying the rumored relationship is not the central focus of the couple’s problems.
According to an insider who spoke to Us Weekly, Hines has been far more upset about the former presidential candidate ending his bid for the White House and giving his endorsement to Donald Trump.
The “Curb Your Enthusiasm” star, 59, is said to be concerned about how her husband’s support of Republican Trump could impact her career.
“Cheryl wasn’t so upset about the alleged affair, but more about how her husband’s involvement with Trump will affect her in Hollywood,” the insider told the outlet, adding that Kennedy’s “political outspokenness has garnered a lot of polarizing attention.”
“She’s worried that it will hinder her work opportunities, given her long career,” they said.
Immediately after dropping out of the race in August, 70-year-old Kennedy — a known conspiracy theorist and anti-vaccine advocate — confirmed his wife of 10 years was “very uncomfortable” with his political decision.
Hines is a “lifelong Democrat” who “does not support Donald Trump,” Kennedy said days later in an interview with TMZ.
Watching her husband stand behind the convicted “Apprentice” star is “something that she would have never imagined, that she never wanted in her life,” he said.
Amid the couple’s issues over politics, Kennedy has also been plagued by accusations he’s had affairs with multiple women.
On Sept. 20, New York magazine announced in a note to its readers that political correspondent Olivia Nuzzi had been put on leave after having “acknowledged to the magazine’s editors that she had engaged in a personal relationship with a former subject relevant to the 2024 campaign while she was reporting on the campaign, a violation of the magazine’s standards around conflicts of interest and disclosures.”
The relationship allegedly began shortly after 31-year-old Nuzzi interviewed RFK for a New York profile published in November 2023. While Nuzzi later told CNN the relationship was “never physical,” subsequent reports claimed the romance included sexting.
Olivia Nuzzi (left), Robert F. Kenndy Jr. and his wife Cheryl Hines. (Getty)
On Wednesday, Mediaite reported that three more women linked to Kennedy’s anti-vaccine organization claimed they too had affairs with the polarizing politician within the past year.
Kennedy has denied all the allegations of cheating.
“Mr. Kennedy has had no romantic relationships with any woman other than his wife since their marriage,” a spokesperson said in a statement to Mediaite.
Hines, meanwhile, has not publicly commented on the matter, though rumors have swirled she’s been considering divorce. She was spotted celebrating a birthday in Spain without her husband or her wedding ring shortly after the scandal broke.