Not to be a downer, but I famously hate April Fools’ Day. I think a day dedicated to my least favorite thing, pranks is ridiculous, right? Let’s give thanks for things that really matter. Where is my Iced Coffee Day? Or my Salmon Sushi Day?
April Fools’ Day, in addition to being annoying, can also spark hurtful pranks, like the one pulled by actress Tori Spelling.
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Tori Spelling is known for being two things — a quintessential ’90s actress, and a mom.
Torri first became a household name for her role as Donna Martin on Beverly Hills, 90210 . Since the 2010s, Torri has starred in a number of reality shows about her family with husband Dean McDermott, whom she has five children with.
Now, Torri is facing backlash for an April Fools’ Day prank where she “announced” she was expecting her sixth child.
Posting a photo of herself cradling her stomach, the 47-year-old captioned the pic “No. 6.”
Considering she posted the photo on April 1st, people were quick to call out the actress.
“If this is an April fools shame on you. Pregnancy is not a practical joke!” wrote one follower.
“Better not be a joke. Joking about pregnancy on April Fools is beyond-tacky.” agreed another.
“I really hope you aren’t using a pregnancy as an April fools joke considering there are so many women out there who wish they could have just one child. You have been blessed with 5, please have compassion and empathy. This is nothing to joke about!”
Other fans believed Torri was pregnant, and sent congratulations to her and her family.
“Woohoo! Congratulations Tori!! Such wonderful news!” wrote one fan.
“Ahhhhhhhh!!! This is the BEST news!!! I’m so happy for you!! A delicious little half dozen!!!” wrote another.
Now, after having revealed the announcement was an April Fools’ Day “prank” Torri is defending herself.
Addressing her fans on Instagram the following day, Torri said: “Every week, magazine and press outlets ask if I am pregnant. To set the record straight, I am not,” she began.
“The fact is, after my fifth baby, my body didn’t bounce back like it had before. That’s when the constant questions of ‘yet another’ pregnancy first began.”
“Unless you’re in the public eye, it is hard to understand what it feels like to be body shamed so publicly,” she explained.
“I feel like I have to constantly defend my body when instead, I should be honoring it for the miracle of life it gave me five times.”
“I know that pregnancy is an extreme blessing. And I would never intentionally poke fun at losing a child or not being able to carry one. I myself have miscarried.”
As for why she did it, she explained she wanted to get back at the media for shaming her body.
“My post was simply to turn the tables for once on the press. They constantly create wild and often hurtful stories about me, my body, and my family.”
“For those of you that are hurt, I hear you. I love you. I welcome your stories and I will try my best to be there to support you,” she concluded.
“Please accept this as a virtual hug to my entire community.”
The apology received mixed reactions from fans.
“You’re amazing and beautiful inside and out. Anyone who posts this about you should be ashamed about themselves. Absolutely disgusting. Sending you love lady,” wrote one follower.
“Tori, unfortunately nobody has a sense of humour anymore, even on April fools day,” wrote another.
However, some fans still felt hurt by the post.
“I’ve had many losses and it didn’t offend me. However, it was in poor taste and you should have known that it would create controversy. Especially today when there’s hyper awareness of being sensitive to pregnancy loss,” explained one fan.
“Press or no press: please don’t joke about pregnancy when there are so many women who have experienced loss, fertility struggles, lost children etc,” echoed another.
What do you think of Tori’s post? Let us know in the comments below!
