Today's Evil Beet Gossip

Megan Fox doesn’t let her kids watch TV

megan fox

Megan Fox is clearly super into being a mom. She’s got two young boys – 2-year-old Noah and 4-month-old Bodhi – and that must make her career in acting pretty difficult to maintain, right? Well, yeah, and she doesn’t really care, because apparently she’s never had much ambition. Huh.

Also, she doesn’t let her kids watch TV, only movies since movies are “more linear” (whatever that even means) and she thinks parents who stick their kids in front of the tube aren’t doing a very good job, apparently.

From Parents:

P: Now that you’re a mom, how does that affect how you pick your projects?

MF: The main thing it does is it affects how much I’m willing to work. I’ve never been an extraordinarily ambitious girl or career-oriented, but especially once I got pregnant with my first son and now [having] my second, it’s so hard to be a working mom especially when your heart is not in your work, when your heart is with your family. I have to make one movie a year because I have to invest in their future and I have to be able to pay their way through college and be able to provide for them. I’m looking for movies that will shoot in Los Angeles, for projects where I’m part of an ensemble so I can shoot in and out in 10-20 days. It’s all about trying to spend as little time away from my kids as possible.
P: What is it like having two kids under 2? What’s the most enjoyable part and most challenging part?

MF: It’s total chaos obviously. Before you have kids you really do not understand how much work it is and how consuming it is. And then you have one and you’re like, “Oh my God my baby is my whole world.” Every moment of the day is dedicated to this one baby and then all of a sudden you have two babies! Their needs are so different because Noah is nearing 2 and then my newborn is 4 months. It’s really hard to manage because I also don’t let them watch TV. It’s not like I’m going to sit Noah in front of the television so I can take care of Bodhi. I have to figure out how to incorporate Noah into the process and have him help me take care of Bodhi and make sure he doesn’t get jealous and make sure nobody’s neglected and everybody’s needs are being met. As a mom it’s hard because I don’t feel like I’m ever giving either one of them 100% of my attention or 100% of myself, so I carry a lot of guilt. Do they each understand how special they are and how much I love them? And are they understanding that they’re unique? It’s hard to make each one feel like an individual when you have to raise them together and manage them together all of the time. So that’s the most difficult part.
P: You said you don’t let the kids watch TV. When is the age range that you will let them?

MF: I do let them watch movies, I just don’t let them watch TV. With movies I feel like there’s a beginning, a middle and an end. It’s linear. There’s a clear story. I think that it’s different than just putting a kid in front of the television, because it’s just nonstop. They’re just being bombarded with all of this sort of live media and it’s very overwhelming and it’s too stimulating I think for anyone. I don’t watch television because it’s just too much it overwhelms me. I just can’t deal with it. But I do let them watch movies. Movies are so nostalgic and they can remind us of these amazing times in our childhood. I remember going to the theater to see movies with my dad or my mom and those are special moments for me. One day they’re gonna watch television. I can’t keep it from them forever. My intention is to keep it away as long as possible or to introduce it through Apple TV so they’re not being exposed to the commercials constantly. My goal is no computers, no cell phones until at least 8th grade.

Huh. Well, look – I’m not going to say Megan Fox isn’t a dedicated mother, because clearly she’s super into it and loves her kids. I will say that I’m tired of the pompous “my kids don’t watch TV, it’s not right” crap because it’s a luxury that not every parent has (and not every parent agrees with even if they can keep the kids away from the TV). Something tells me that when Megan gets fed up with the kids and just wants a minute to herself, she can leave them with a nanny who’ll entertain them. Most mothers and/or don’t have the disposable income to do that, so the TV is the only way they can actually gets things NOT involving the kids (or maybe involving the kids that they can’t be a part of, like fixing their rooms, or making their food) done.

Also, it’s so obnoxious to complain about how much you just don’t wanna work but oh, you guess you’ll just HAVE to make a movie so you can put your kids through school. Get a grip on reality. Most parents have to work full-time jobs, year round – sometimes multiple full-time jobs – to do the same and many still come up short. The woe-is-me, poor movie star thing just does not wash. Sigh. Since Megan Fox went away for a while I forgot how annoying she is. This was a great reminder.

8 CommentsLeave a comment

  • this bitch is dumb. tv and computers have excellent learning tools. and to have her kids not exposed to a computer until at LEAST (wtf???) 14, i feel, will hinder them more than anything given how integrated they are in society now

    • No “this bitch” is not dumb. Computers (or more accurately the internet) is an unequalled learning tool, TV on the other hand is 45% drivel and 45% propaganda, with perhaps 10% actually worth watching.

      However no computers or cells phones before 8th grade is not just unwise, it is probably impossible unless you live in the Congo or Papua New Guinea.

      • yes, she is dumb. there are great opportunities to be had utilizing television and computers. your suggestion of the internet being ‘better’ is void – your argument for television having mindless “propaganda” and “drivel” is definitely applicable for the internet as well. the point is this: either tool obviously has to be filtered to ensure your kid is getting the most out of the experience. i think her idea of using apple tv (whenever she does let her kids watch tv, 20 years from now) is a good one – again, using a filter to what the children see and absorb. i see nothing wrong with a little tv or computer usage regularly, in addition to physical play and reading and yadda, yadda, yadda.

      • “your argument for television having mindless “propaganda” and “drivel” is definitely applicable for the internet as well.”

        No, they are qualitatively different and the reason why is within your own reply: it is very easy to filter the internet. It is much harder to filter TV. TV is push based, the internet is pull based.

  • I don’t really see a problem with her not letting her kids watch TV. She clearly states she’s okay with movies and I think her point makes sense. Movies are definitely more engaging than most kids’ television shows. It’s easy to plop in front of the tv and mindlessly watch for hours–a storyline in a film keeps you engaged.

    Plus they’re spared all of the advertisements on tv. It’s not a point that Fox makes, but that’s incentive enough to me to not allow your children to watch tv.

  • Of course, she lets her children watch movies…if she said they do not, then mothers everywhere would have a reason to avoid Megan Fox’s movies. With this, she is putting herself on a pedestal but allowing us to relate by making sure we send our kids to her movies.

    Stars have got to get over this whole “no TV” rule–I cannot say it better than others have said here, but I am sick of the whole farce.

  • The AAP recommends no screen time for children under two and should remain limited after that. This is not a novel idea; screen time hinders proper brain development. Turning off the tv is not “a luxury”; it should never be a babysitter. Nannies aren’t needed, simple toys, creative play, and even coping with boredom is much better for the brain.

  • And real tangible experiences are better than a computer as a learning tool for children. The more senses involved, the more connections in the brain.