8 Bad Celeb Moms Who Learned Their Lesson (And 8 Who Are Still Terrible Moms)
Emily Bell Quick Links
Being a celebrity is not easy, but being a celebrity mother is even harder. Everyone knows that motherhood is challenging and every mother makes mistakes. Obviously, it is easier to be a mother if you are not famous – no one will ever know about the challenges you faced and the mistakes you made.
However, celebrities don’t have the luxury of anonymity. We scrutinize their lives and we almost always know everything about them. We know when they get pregnant, when they have miscarriages, when they get into fights with their children and when they lose custody of their children.
Regular mothers are often criticized for their parenting style and most are extremely annoyed with other people butting into their lives. So can you imagine how annoyed celebrities are when their parenting style is criticized all over the media?
That being said, some celebrities deserve to be criticized for their role as a parent. Some celebs are so incredibly bad at being mothers and the world has no sympathy for them. Others are terrible mothers at the start but learn from their mistakes.
Learned Her Lesson: Jodie Sweetin DUI With Her Daughter In The Car
The actress Jodie Sweetin became famous after her role of Stephanie Tanner in the 90’s TV show Full House. She seemed sweet and capable. No one knew that only a year after the show ended Sweetin started drinking and doing drugs. She was only 14 years old at the time.
Sweetin said – “I put on my best TV smile. They didn’t think I was coming down from a two-day bender of coke, meth and ecstasy, and they didn’t think I was lying to them with every sentence that came out of my mouth.”
However, her drinking and drug addiction was not only harming her. In one incident, Sweetin was drunk-driving with her child. An investigation by child services followed and Sweetin realized that she had to get her life together – “That was the big rock bottom. I not only put myself in danger, but also my daughter, who I loved more than anything. I felt terrible.” The incident made Sweetin turn her life around and become a good mother.
Still Terrible: Rosie O’Donnell Chased Her Daughter With A Glass Bottle
It may be hard to believe but the comedian and actress Rosie O’Donnell is another celebrity mother who is considered to be one of the worst parents in the world (or at least Hollywood). Rosie O’Donnell has five children – Blake Christopher, Chelsea Belle, Vivienne Rose, Parker Jaren, and Dakota.
Recently, O’Donnell’s daughter Chelsea, who was adopted when she was just a baby, revealed that her and her mother’s relationship is not good. According to Chelsea, trouble started a few days after her 18th birthday – “It was pretty late at night. A couple of weeks prior, I had gotten a tattoo. She had spyware on my phone so she could see pretty much everything I did. She called me into her room and asked me about the tattoo. I denied it. She asked me to take off my clothes – she didn’t know where it was – to show her and I refused. “
O’Donnell then supposedly picked up the wine bottle, started chasing Chelsea around and threatened to hit her with the bottle, call the police and tell them that Chelsea had attacked her.
However, O’Donnell was abusive, both verbally and physically, to Chelsea in the past also and as a result the latter doesn’t think that their relationship could ever be repaired.
Learned Her Lesson: Octomom Left The "Other" Industry
Nadya Sulemon, better known as Octomom, came to media attention in 2009 when she gave birth to eight babies in one go. The world was fascinated and she soon began appearing on TV. We then found out that Octomom already had six kids before she gave birth to eight new babies. Furthermore, the babies were conceived using IVF (a medical procedure where women’s eggs are fertilized outside her body).
The whole affair seems rather strange, doesn’t it? Plus, to keep herself and her kids from becoming homeless Octomom posed in the nude and acted in an adult movie.
However, after her oldest daughters began behaving similarly, Octomom gave up her career in the adult industry and became a family counselor.
Still Terrible: Kris Jenner Leaked Her Daughter's Racy Tape
Who can dispute that Kris Jenner is an awful mother? Sure, she helped her daughters become famous and rich. But that came at a price. It seems that Jenner cared less about her daughters than about their rise to fame.
The author Ian Halperin who wrote the book Kardashian Dynasty: The Controversial Rise of America’s Royal Family, believes that it was Jenner who leaked Kim Kardashian's sex tape – “It was Kris who engineered the deal behind the scenes and was responsible for the tape seeing the light of day.” What kind of mother would do that to her own daughter?
Learned Her Lesson: Britney Spears Once Locked Herself And Her Kids In The Bathroom While On Pills
Ten years ago Britney Spears had a mental breakdown which led to her losing custody of her two children, Sean and Jayden, to their father and her ex-husband, Kevin Federline. She was seen as a danger to her children – she once drove on the highway holding Sean instead of having him sit in a car seat. Another time she locked herself and her children in the bathroom when she was on pills. In the end, Spears had to be placed in an involuntary psychiatric hold.
However, Spears overcame her mental breakdown and is now considered to be a great mother. In fact, the internet is full of articles such as “It’s Momma, B*tch: What Makes Britney Spears The Best Celebrity Mother?”
It is obvious that Spears takes her role as a parent seriously. She’s a fun mother but she also knows the importance of discipline. She has said – “Homework is a priority. We have a reward system that helps motivate them: if they get so many A’s they get one toy a month.”
Still Terrible: Kim Kardashian Ignored Her Daughter North When She Fell Down
Kim Kardashian has long been dubbed as the worst mother ever. Kim Kardashian and her husband, Kanye West, have two children – a daughter named North West and a son named Saint West.
Kim has been accused of treating her daughter North West like an accessory. When a photo of North West wearing a fur jacket was released many comments were made that questioned Kim’s parenting. Sharon Osbourne even said – “[North] isn’t an accessory – she shouldn’t be wearing ugly couture clothes.”
In addition, Kim is not really there for her kids when they need her most, say when an accident occurs. For example, when North West fell down on a trip to the Los Angeles Museum of Art, Kim barely glanced at her even though she was standing right beside her. It was North West’s aunt Kourtney who picked her up.
Learned Her Lesson: Hilary Duff Was Caught Holding A Cigarette
All hell broke loose when a picture of Hilary Duff holding a cigarette was snapped. The photo showed the actress standing outside Rock & Reilly’s Irish pub in L.A and holding a cigarette. The internet and the media immediately dubbed Duff as a bad mother.
Duff then tried to defend herself, saying – “Yikes me holding a cigarette for my friend might have been a bad idea! Pretty bummed about the photo. Sorry guys, looks worse than it is!”
Who knows whether Duff was telling the truth. After all, she had good reason to smoke: she was being sued for slamming into another car and injuring the female driver to the point where she couldn’t go to work. Nonetheless, Duff has been a great mother the last few years and no more pictures of her smoking have been snapped.
Still Terrible: Farrah Abraham Called Her Daughter "Stupid"
There is no denying that the reality TV star Farrah Abraham is a terrible mother. Even when one disregards her sex tapes she easily makes the “worst parents” list. She is constantly seen screaming at her daughter, Sophia Laurent Abraham, for no apparent reason.
And of course, who can forget the time when Abraham called her daughter stupid? When Sophia, who was sick at the time, refused to get ready for a party, Abraham said – “I don’t know why Sophia needs to act like a heathen, get up there. Sophia is too stupid to get ready. It’s not my issue right now.”
Another time, Abraham confessed that she once forgot her daughter Sophia in a store after she had forgotten to take her herbal supplement that helped her focus.
Learned Her Lesson: Jenny McCarthy Embarrassed Her Son On Radio
The actress and model Jenny McCarthy has a son named Evan who is autistic. She takes good care of Evan and uses her fame to raise awareness of autism. However, people began doubting whether McCarthy was a good mother after she said that she wants her son, who was 13 years old at the time, to lose his virginity with the Bachelor star Ashley Iaconetti.
Iaconetti used to babysit Evan and McCarthy further went on to say that her son is “just waiting for [Ashley] to come back so he can stare at her boobs.”
However, she has not made any such insensitive jokes recently which makes us believe that she has turned over a new leaf. This year she left her son a sweet birthday message on Instagram – “Happy birthday to my amazing son, I love you to the moon and back!”
Still Terrible: Kate Gosselin Abuses Her Kids
Kate Gosselin has to be the world’s worst mother. Sure, she has eight kids but even so, there’s no need to be so nasty to them. But how is she mean to them? Well, there have been so many incidents that we don’t even know where to begin!
Let’s start with the time when Gosselin was doing an interview with Access Hollywood. Her children started complaining about being thirsty but Gosselin ignored them. Finally, she got up, got herself a bottle of water and chugged it down, without offering any of her children a sip.
Gosselin is constantly accused of abusing her kids at home and these accusations seem to be well-founded. For example, in an interview on the Today show her kids refused to answer questions about home life.
In addition, a leaked journal entry described Gosselin spanking her son after he spilled a bag of beans – “I have never felt that I may seriously injure a child but today was that day.”
Learned Her Lesson: Courtney Love's Daughter Once Filed A Restraining Order Against Her
As you can probably imagine, drugs and excessive drinking did not make Courtney Love a good mother. So it is no surprise that Love and her daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, have always had a very strained relationship.
In fact, in 2009 Frances filed a restraining order against her mother after the two got into a physical fight. Frances’ male nanny backed her up and the restraining order was granted. Frances has said that her mother “has taken drugs for as long as I can remember. She basically exists now on ...Xanax, Adderall, Sonata and Abilify, sugar and cigarettes.”
However, with time the relationship between Love and Frances has improved. A source said that “Courtney and Frances have had a strained relationship over the years, but after tons of fallouts they actually get on quite well now.”
Still Terrible: Kate Moss Sets A Bad Example For Her Daughter
Kate Moss has one child – a daughter named Lila Grace Moss Hack. As you probably already know, Moss leads a wild life and loves drinking and partying. And having a child has never stopped her from any of that.
Moss is definitely not a model parent and she certainly does not set a good example for her daughter. Lila Grace Moss has said that her mum is embarrassing. That makes sense – remember that time in 2015 when Moss was on an EasyJet flight and after the crew refused to serve her alcohol she poured herself vodka from her carry-on luggage? Then she went on to call the pilot a “basic b*tch” and was escorted from the flight.
Learned Her Lesson: Kerry Katona Set A Bad Example By Smoking
Do you remember the famous band Atomic Kitten? Kerry Katona was one of the band’s singers and she was really into drugs. In fact, her smoking, drinking and drug taking did not stop even when she had children.
When Katona was pregnant, she continued to smoke – “I was smoking 20 a day before I was pregnant and I’ve cut down to one. I honestly don’t think a couple of puffs are going to do that much damage.”
However, Katona has really tried to be the best mother she could be and it seems like she has not failed. On her 16th birthday, Katona’s daughter Molly thanked her for being the best mother ever – “Mum, the past 16 years you have sacrificed everything to be a mother, you always told me something changes when you become a mother and your whole life changes. So today on my 16th birthday I am also celebrating you, for being the best mother I could have asked for.”
Still Terrible: Brooke Mueller Was Seen Hitting Her Children At Car Wash
The actress Brooke Mueller is another celebrity who has suffered from drug abuse. Currently, she is getting help and is seeing her two children, Bob Sheen and Max Sheen, on rare occasions.
There is no denying that Brooke Mueller has been a terrible mother. Remember that time last year when she went on the run with Charlie Sheen's kids? Before she ran away she walked into a nearby bar barefoot, with her two children in tow. She tried to get a cigarette off someone and got into a fight with her nanny who was with her. Someone eventually called the police but Mueller left the bar before they arrived.
And let’s not forget that time when Mueller was seen hitting her boys at a car wash. The witness called 911 and described Mueller in great detail. Mueller left before the police arrived.
Learned Her Lesson: Belinda Carlisle Was Never There For Her Son Due To Her Career And Addiction Issues
The singer Belinda Carlisle was also hooked on drugs which stood in her way of being a good mother. Carlisle remembers the period when she was into drugs with horror – “I can’t believe I’m not dead. I should actually look like the Phantom of the Opera with just two holes in the front of my face.”
As you can imagine, her drug addiction and her career meant that she spent very little time with her son James. However, she must have pulled herself together at some point because in 2012 her son wrote a piece for Huffington Post which he titled “My Wonderful Mom, Belinda Carlisle.” In it, he thanked her for being a wonderful mother and for being understanding about his sexuality.
Still Terrible: Madonna's Son Said She Treated Him Like A Trophy
Madonna is a terrible mother. She is clearly scared of growing old and will do anything to remain as youthful as possible. She is constantly seen wearing questionable clothes and she once kissed with Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera in front of her then 6 year-old daughter.
Madonna has forced her son, Rocco, to go along with her on her world tour and humiliated him online by posting a picture of him dressed like a girl. She also did not allow him to watch TV and expected him to follow her crazy diet of no sweets, dairy, salt and many animal products.
Last year Madonna’s ex-husband won custody over Rocco and Rocco couldn’t be happier seeing as according to him, Madonna treated him like a “trophy”. Madonna’s daughter, Lourdes, said that Madonna can be “too controlling.”
