Lily Collins is one of the many celebrities who have welcomed children through surrogacy. But the Emily in Paris star is one of the few who received intense backlash for her decision. The star recently took to social media to post a picture of herself with her daughter, Tove.
The actress broke the internet with a photo she posted to Instagram. The photo featured Lily and her daughter snuggling as they posed for a selfie. What shocked netizens was the star’s decision to go bare-faced in the photo. Several users praised her while calling her “beautiful” even without makeup on.
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Lily’s no make-up picture comes after she was severely criticized for looking like had significantly aged. The star was brutally trolled online for looking “old” when the trailer for Emily in Paris’ season 4 came out. A Reddit thread pointed out that Collins looks like “she aged at least 10 years” compared to season 3.
“She looks too old all of a sudden and it does not work with the young, vibrant, quirky persona they portray her to be,” another user wrote in the comments. “I’m just watching the latest season and I completely agree!” a third added. Another netizen noted that the actress’ “bad clothing” and “wrinkled forehead” make her look like she is in her 40s.
Lily’s latest post comes amid the backlash she and her husband are receiving for opting to welcome their child through surrogacy. Last month Lily and her husband Charlie McDowell took to Instagram to post a photo of their daughter. The announcement was met with more criticism than well wishes.
People in the comments section accused the couple of “buying” her child. Another user criticized rich people like the actress for “using women as incubators.” Another user took to the comments section to write, “Nowadays with money, it is really easy to buy a belly and have a baby.”
The actress’s husband took to social media to address the backlash. McDowell started off by thanking the people who wished the couple well while noting that he and his wife were “overjoyed and very grateful.” He also took the chance to talk about the “unkind” messages he and his wife received.
“It’s ok to not be an expert on surrogacy. It’s ok to not know why someone might need a surrogate to have a child,” the director wrote. He concluded the post by telling the haters how “it’s okay” to “spend less time spewing hateful words into the world.” Collins replied to the post with heart emojis.
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Several netizens rushed to the actress’ defense in the comments section as well. Many people wished the actress well while advising her to “ignore” the hate people had been directing towards her. Multiple people took to the comments section to share their experiences welcoming children through surrogacy.
“Can people just shut up about something they know nothing about?” wrote an agitated netizen in defense of the actress. “Why all the hate about the surrogacy? When Paris Hilton or the Kardashians did this, no one said a thing,” another user noted.
