Ashley Tisdale is not afraid to speak her mind.
With her new op-ed, “Breaking Up With My Toxic Mom Group” on The Cut, Tisdale proved she won’t shy away from any topic.
In her essay, the former Disney star ruminated over what she believed was finding her “village” with a group of women, but instead felt thrown “back in high school.” While Tisdale said she initially “felt lucky” to find such support in the group, she quickly noticed herself being phased out of certain group activities. Many were quick to find photos of Tisdale online, linking her to a group of celebrity moms who included Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore and Meghan Trainor.
This isn’t the first time Tisdale has been outspoken online. After condemning political violence in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death, Tisdale defended what many online considered to be a tribute to the conservative activist. “It shouldn’t be controversial to say this, but even when we disagree or find someone’s views offensive, violence is never the answer,” she wrote at the time, before noting she still holds progressive beliefs.
ASHLEY TISDALE SLAMS ‘TOXIC’ MOM GROUP AFTER REPEATED EXCLUSION
Tisdale has also been outspoken about the criticism and scrutiny she’s received over the years as she moved on from child stardom. She recalled the shame she felt after getting a nose job in 2007 to fix health issues.
“Plastic surgery wasn’t culturally accepted then like it is now,” she wrote on Frenshe in 2021. “When I got it done I was scrutinized, judged, and made to feel ashamed over my decision. I made a decision that was no one’s business (and is STILL no one’s business) and for that decision, I was constantly made to feel bad about it.”
Here’s a look at the latest drama surrounding Tisdale’s mom group essay:
Matthew Koma appeared to take a dig at Ashley Tisdale after the “High School Musical” alum exposed what she described as a “toxic” mom group that Duff is allegedly part of.
One day after Tisdale shared her op-ed, “Breaking Up With My Toxic Mom Group,” on The Cut, Koma took to social media to poke fun at the actress’ claims.
Koma edited a photo to place himself onto a similar background as Tisdale’s cover photo, using The Cut’s logo and a fictional headline that read, “When You’re The Most Self Obsessed Tone Deaf Person On Earth, Other Moms Tend To Shift Focus To Their Actual Toddlers,” with a sub-headline that read, “A Mom Group Tell All Through A Father’s Eyes.”
“Read my new interview with @TheCut,” Koma captioned the Instagram Story post.
The next day, Koma posted another Instagram Story about Moore’s song “Candy,” and Moore replied on her own account, praising him and writing, “Love you.”
Ashley Tisdale’s husband, Christopher French, posted a cryptic message to his Instagram story after the “High School Musical” star’s essay gained traction online.
“Underrated life skill: Pausing to decide if it’s worth your energy,” the quote he posted read.
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Meanwhile, a representative for Tisdale told TMZ that her recent essay was not alluding to the friend group including Hilary Duff, Mandy Moore and Meghan Trainor.
The former Disney star’s rep also shut down the speculation the fallout was over conservative political beliefs — pointing to the fact Tisdale is a registered Democrat.
Meghan Trainor responded to the online drama but seemingly didn’t have much to say.
Trainor posted a video on TikTok that said, “Me finding out about the apparent mom group drama.” The video featured Trainor sitting at her computer looking shocked while her new song “Still Don’t Care” played in the background.
Outside of her video poking fun at the situation and promoting her new song, Trainor hasn’t made any other public statements.
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Christy Carlson Romano, who also appeared in numerous Disney shows, weighed in on the celebrity mom group drama.
“I think that mom groups are really important to people when they first have their baby,” Romano said in her video. “I think it aligns you with a certain kind of tribe to help you get through postpartum hormones and stuff like that. I think it’s really great, [and] that’s why mommy-and-me classes exist.”
Romano went on to explain that things become “a little trickier” as your kids get older. The “Kim Possible” star pointed out that sometimes kids stop getting along, which causes moms to cycle out of friendships.
“That kinda sucks, but in the end, if you can make time for the people that matter to you, they should be giving back to you as much as you’re putting out. If that dynamic shifts, then just find another group of friends.”
“It’s very simple. It’s not supposed to be dramatic, “But, I get it,” she added. “Sometimes it gets a little crazy — and then you write an article about it.”
A source close to Ashley Tisdale’s former group of mom friends shed light on what really went down.
“It was a misalignment of values that Ashley decided to make public,” a source close to the group told People magazine.
“Friends naturally drift apart. It didn’t warrant a dramatic breakup text.”
Fox News Digital’s Christina Dugan Ramirez contributed to this report.
