Tori Spelling Clarifies Post That Showed Her 7-Year-Old Son Giving Her A Massage Amid Backlash

Tori Spelling recently addressed online criticism over an Instagram photo of her 7-year-old son, Beau, playfully pretending to give her a massage in exchange for allowance money.

The actress has now clarified on her misSPELLING podcast that the image was intended as a lighthearted moment and not to be taken seriously.

Toru Spelling expressed surprise at the backlash and emphasized that such interactions between parents and children are normal.

On the latest episode of her misSPELLING podcast, Spelling talked about the backlash she faced after sharing a playful moment with her 7-year-old son, Beau, on Instagram.

“So on my [Instagram] Stories recently, I posted what I thought was a very cute photo of my 7-year-old son Beau — pretending to be the key word here — pretending to give me a massage,” Spelling began, per Page Six. “And then I said he wanted to make money for an allowance, and I thought this was a good way to start. [It] beats chores, something like that. I don’t know. Solid plan.”

In the image, posted earlier this month, the “Beverly Hills, 90210” actress was lying face down on a massage table, partially covered with a pink blanket, while Beau playfully massaged her calves.

The caption read, “Beau said he wanted to do chores in exchange for allowance… solid plan.”

However, after facing backlash online, Spelling clarified that it was never meant to be taken seriously.

“All of a sudden, it exploded on the press scene,” she said of the reaction to her massage post.

Spelling also pushed back against claims that she "forced" her son Beau to give her a massage, clarifying that he had simply tagged along to a massage appointment and wanted to try it himself.

“So [the massage therapist] took that one picture of Beau pretending to give me a massage,” she explained. “And I just think it’s wild. It’s wild the stuff that you can put out there that they change the narrative on so hardcore.”

Although the “Saved by the Bell” actress didn’t anticipate the backlash, she admitted that a friend had cautioned her about the potential reaction.

“I mean, as soon as I put it up, one of my best guy friends, he DM’d me, and he was like, ‘That’s not a good look,'” she recalled. “And I’m like, ‘I know’ — like joking.”

“I’m like, ‘I know. He was getting all the wrong spots. Like, you should have started on the feet,” she added.

Her friend, however, predicted the controversy. “He's like, ‘Oh my god. People are gonna freak out,” Spelling shared.

Spelling shared that she was surprised by the backlash, believing it was obvious that the situation wasn’t serious.

“We are not at home. I’m not making him do chores. Clearly, I’m at a massage parlor,'” she explained, adding that even if it “were true,” she didn't understand why people found it so controversial for a child to show affection toward a parent.

“One of my mom's friends even pointed out that it’s normal for kids to walk on their parents’ backs or rub their feet,” she shared.

Spelling also expressed frustration over the double standard in Hollywood when it comes to comedians and actors.

She noted that comedians with families “can post anything, and people are like, ‘They are kidding. That’s funny,' but if an actor posts something, they’re like, ‘Oh my god. That must be true. She’s a horrible mom.'”

Despite a friend joking that the controversy at least meant she was “still relevant,” Spelling admitted that the criticism stung.

The actress shared that she already struggles with “mom guilt—I don’t need people shaming me, thinking I’m forcing my kids to massage me.”

Spelling previously opened up about her lazy mom hacks in an episode of her misSPELLING podcast, revealing that she usually prepares Beau for school the night before.

"It's so bad. I've gotten so lazy with my youngest one because there's so many that at night I put him in his clothes for the next day," the "Beverly Hills: 90210" alum shared with a laugh, adding, "And convinced him that it's cool to do that."

Spelling then proceeded to explain how she "rationalized" the routine for Beau.

"So, he has dinner, he takes his bath — sometimes— but then I'll be like, 'Hey, dude. It will save an extra five minutes if we get dressed now, and then you can sleep later,'" she recalled of their conversation.

"And I can sleep later, wink wink," Spelling told her actress Debbie Gibson. "So he's like, 'Yeah.' So, he sleeps in his clothes."

The podcast host then jokingly asked, "Am I a bad mom?"

The actress shares five kids, Liam, Stella, Hattie, Finn, and Beau, with her estranged husband, Dean McDermott.