Jenny Mollen faces backlash over a post featuring her 12-year-old son.
Mollen welcomed her son Sid with ex Jason Biggs in 2014. The couple also shares 8-year-old son Lazlo. Us weekly confirmed in May that Biggs and Mollen had separated after 18 years of marriage.
“They get along great and remain focused on raising their two boys,” said a representative for the estranged couple Us at the time.
Before news of their split broke, Mollen reflected on how she felt like a “surrogate” in her marriage to Biggs.
“When I got together with Jason, I always struggled in the beginning because I suddenly felt like I wasn’t the oldest daughter anymore and I felt like I had it all together, and then all of a sudden I married this guy who completely overshadowed me in a lot of ways – professionally,” Mollen said on a May episode of the What Matters With Liz podcast. “Everyone was like, ‘Oh my God, Jason Biggs,’ and I became the guest. And it drove me crazy, always just being pushed aside.”
“To be the replacement and not the heir,” Mollen continued. “It was like, ‘What’s going on?’ I was the replacement. I was that one American cake Spare part. I’m referring to (Prince) Harry. That drove me crazy and I always had that feeling.”
Scroll down to learn more about why Mollen faced backlash for her post:
What did Jenny Mollen post?
Mollen shared two pictures on Instagram on May 25 that showed her lying on a bed with Sid. In the picture, she put her hands around the back of his head and laid down next to him. Neither of their faces could be seen.
In another picture, Mollen was lying on top of her son with her hands clasped behind his head. Sid put his hands in front of Mollen’s face covering their faces.
Did Jenny Mollen remove the caption?
Mollen has since removed the caption of her post, which still contains the two images, and added a period instead. Her first caption reportedly read, “Your eldest son is going to be the most toxic guy you ever date.”
What did users say about the post?
Mollen’s upload drew mixed reactions from users in the comments section.
“Saw the original post with the original caption. 😳 Super weird. And I have boys the same age. And yes, we hug and cuddle but the caption was scary AF,” one user wrote, while another added: “Hugging your kids: Healthy and encouraged. Calling your kid your friend and posting photos of you lying between his legs on a bed: Not healthy or encouraged. Your child is not your friend. A friend is a romantic partner.”
However, others defended Mollen in the comments section.
“What the fuck? She’s not doing anything wrong. That’s her son. That’s his mother. We knew her very and eccentric. I love her ❤️🙌😂😂,” one user wrote, while another added, “Jenny, it’s all good. You go ahead and hug your kids as much as you can!! Before you know it, they’re out on their own… and then you have to get a cat.” 🐈!!”
How did Jenny Mollen react to the criticism?
Mollen opened up about feeling like she was under scrutiny during their breakup.
“It’s like, because I’m separated, because I’m not protected by the institution of marriage, I suddenly feel like a different kind of target in what I post,” Mollen said in a statement she posted via her Instagram Stories on June 1. “This is absolutely stunning. A photo of me hugging my 12-year-old child is being ridiculed.”
In a follow-up post shared on her Substack, Mollen explained that the photos were “taken on a Monday evening after (Sid) returned from a weekend trip.”
Mollen then defended the photos and their controversial caption.
“The joke that offended people was, ‘Your eldest son is going to be the most toxic friend you ever had.’ And he is,” she wrote. “Parenting has required a level of commitment and self-sacrifice from me that in any other context would be considered pathological. Under any other circumstances, I would never accept this type of relationship. And yet here I am, jumping through fire, constantly seeking affection and approval, waiting on the phone for a man who can’t even drive a car.”
Mollen added, “When my kids were little, I was so overwhelmed. They needed so much that it felt almost impossible to catch my breath. I’ve spent the last decade begging alone for five minutes just to get exactly what I asked for. And it broke my heart. It will break your heart, too. Don’t let anyone shame you for hanging in there while you still can.”
