Tig Notaro is courageously opening up about her painfully bitter falling out with her close friend, Cheryl Hines. On the October 14th episode of "Breaking Bread With Tom Papa," the comedian shared that her friendship with the "Curb Your Enthusiasm" actress took a dark turn due to Hines' marriage to Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Prior to their rift, Notaro, 54, and Hines, 60, had hosted their own podcast, "Tig & Cheryl: True Story," where they chatted about a new documentary each week.
Notaro described Hines as "one of my favorite friends to be ridiculous with" before their friendship fizzled out. "We made each other laugh so hard," Notaro shared of their time working on the podcast. "And I love documentaries, and it was fun to watch a documentary every week, but also we took the pressure off."
However, Notaro continued, Hines' marriage to RFK Jr. began to put a strain on their friendship. In the past, Kennedy's beliefs were "like a gnat on the arm," Notaro said, but she tried her best to ignore them. After all, Notaro and Hines' friendship "predated" the marriage.
RFK Jr.'s entry into the 2024 presidential race, though, led Notaro to feel like she "needed to step away." As Kennedy's platform grew larger, so too did those beliefs that Notaro couldn't get past. "It started to grow, and Cheryl wanted me to hear Bobby out," Notaro said. "They had these good ideas, and I was like, 'I can't, I can't, I can't.' I just didn't trust it. And then he endorsed Trump, and then it just got hard."
After dropping out of the race in August 2024 and endorsing Donald Trump, Kennedy was nominated to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. The politician is known for a range of controversial stances, including his anti-vaccine beliefs and unsubstantiated medical claims.
"When somebody is like, 'Oh, we don't agree on everything' within a marriage, that is so vague," Notaro said. "I think where it has led is... It's not my world. It's a hard pass. You're okaying a particular ride for this country to go on."
When Papa expressed his nostalgia for the podcast Notaro and Hines used to host together, the comedian grew emotional. "It's really sad, because it did bring me so much joy," she said. "And Cheryl did bring me so much joy. But that's what I'm looking for now – I want to get back to prioritizing people that bring me joy and workloads that bring me joy."
