Kate and Jon Gosselin’s son Collin is opening up about his mom.
The 18-year-old, who appeared on the reality show Jon & Kate Plus 8 and its sequel, Kate + 8, after the couple split in 2009, says his family’s years on TV were detrimental to his relationship with her.
“I want to believe it was because of TV and what being in the public eye does to a family,” he told ET of their estrangement in an interview published Monday. “I think it tore us apart. It gave us less time to actually be together as a family, [and] more time to be in the public eye.”
Collin spent time in an institution for kids with behavioral issues, his mom revealed years ago. Afterward, he went to live with his dad, where one of his sisters, Hannah, also lived.
“After being there, I didn’t have a relationship with her,” Collin said of Kate. “Even before [being] there, I don’t think we had much of a relationship and I think that just kept tearing it even more down.”
Jon won custody of Collin when his son was 14, after Kate and her lawyer didn’t show up for a court hearing that, according to ET, they had asked be postponed. Collin said it “didn’t really bother me” that she hadn’t been there.
He also estimated that he went through worse experiences with his mom than most kids.
“I came to the conclusion that everybody has their own agenda, you know?” he said. “My mom had her own agenda, and I don’t know exactly what that was. But I was put in a tough spot and my agenda was to make it out on top of that tough spot.”
He begged to live with his father in 2017, but he didn’t have a smooth time there either. In September 2020, Collin accused Jon of beating him. Jon refuted his son’s accusations, saying that he was only restraining him, and produced a letter from authorities, obtained by ET, stating that they were “unfounded.”
Kate spoke out in support of Collin at the time, to which Jon argued that she wasn’t even in touch with Collin. Jon also claimed his son struggled with PTSD because of the way he’s been treated by Kate.
Although Collin has a difficult relationship with his mother, his sister Hannah has said that she continues to stay in contact with her.
Collin said in his new interview that he would like to be more connected to Kate, too.
“Yes, it would be ideal,” he said when asked.
He elaborated, “It’s unfortunate that we didn’t have a relationship. I think every son wants to have a relationship with their mom. But I’m doing very well.”
Yahoo Entertainment has reached out to Kate for comment.
