Busy Philips Expertly Hits Back At Trolls Who Mum-Shamed Her New Tattoo

Busy Philips is not having a bar of the internet’s mum-shaming, capiche? The actress has made it perfectly clear that how she raises her kids – or more specifically, the swear words she exposes them to – is nobody’s business but hers.

You see, she recently shared a photo of her new ink on Instagram: an illustration of a young girl ice-skating away from the words, “f*ck em.” She explained that the doodle which has taken up real estate on her ankle was originally drawn for her memoir, This Will Only Hurt A Little. And, funnily enough, the whole process of getting it really did only hurt “a little.”

Of course, being social media – a place where people are either a.) absolute angel-faces or b.) absolute assholes – there were many opinions to be had. Heaps of them were positive, with fans leaving comments such as “Love!” and “Need this!” But in the other side of the spectrum, many believed that it wasn’t appropriate for Busy to be tattooing expletives on her body on account of her two young kids. *insert eye-roll here*

My favorite illustration drawn by @mcfetridge for my book #thiswillonlyhurtalittle (it's in the A Movie Script Ending chapter). Tattooed beautifully by @dre.dayli in Dallas at @thirdeyegallery last night. And weirdly true to form and as things always tend to be, it really always only hurts a little. ❤️

“Not a positive message to send to your daughters, but whatever,” one person wrote.

And then: “Hate to be a buzz kill but won’t your children want to see this? Isn’t there a more creative approach to the same sentiment? Visually it’s beautiful, but literally just adding to the unimaginative use of language.”

Another added: “I’m not judging. Honestly because I wish I was brave as you to get a tattoo like that – but what do you tell the kids?? That’s when Busy returned fire: “I tell them that these are the words to live by. Especially as women.”

Following on from all the (unwarranted) criticism she received on the matter, she brought it up on an episode of her talk show Busy Tonight.

Back to work and tonight my guest is the one and only @hitrecordjoe! We talk the 20th anniversary of 10 Things I Hate About You, and his new collaboration with @logic Band Together With Logic. YOU should watch Busy Tonight tonight on E! because you just should I don't know what to tell you.🤷‍♀️

“My kids have heard the word, ‘f*ck’ before – they’re my f*cking kids,” she said. “If you’re not teaching your daughter to say ‘f*ck ‘em,’ they’re just going to end up watching a lot of boys playing video games or skateboarding in parking lots. Is that what you want for them?”

Sure, it’s not something that everyone will want permanently etched onto their body, but she does have a good point – and one that’s certainly worthy of teaching her kids: you don’t need validation from others to be happy.

Lucy Bode

Lucy is WH’s Digital Editor, Features Writer, social media guru and resident woo. A long black lover and foodie at heart, she considers peanut butter an hourly staple and believes chardonnay is the superior drop. When she's not at the beach, barre or yoga studio you'll find her coming up with new and improved ways to kill her unkillable houseplants