Rebel Wilson being mum-shamed reveals a gross double standard

Rebel Wilson and Chris Hemsworth are two beloved Australian stars but there’s a wild reason only one of those photos makes people uncomfortable.

OPINION

Rebel Wilson and Chris Hemsworth are two beloved Australian stars often spotted at fabulous events, but only one gets parent shamed for it.

Wilson appeared on The Life Uncut podcast this week and she discussed how she got shamed for leaving her newborn daughter Royce to go to Leonardo DiCaprio’s birthday party when her daughter less than a month old.

At the time Wilson posted a video of herself partying and then deleted it due to the intense backlash.

People were accusing Wilson of being a bad mother for leaving her daughter and the general vibe was that people online hated seeing a new mum going out and having fun.

To clarify, she left her daughter with a nanny and explained that the party was also an opportunity for her to network for work.

When chatting about her experience of being mum-shamed on the popular podcast, Wilson made an excellent point. “Chris Hemsworth goes to the gym, and people aren’t yelling ‘where’s your kids?’ What are you doing? But why do they do it to every woman?” she said.

Rebel Wilson on the double standards of being a mum. Picture: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

Chris Hemsworth has avoided getting shamed. Picture: Christian Gilles/NCA NewsWire

The short answer is because we love to shame women, hence why the term mum-shaming has become slang, and the term dad-shaming has never really taken off.

Wilson’s point about Hemsworth holds up. He has three children and a hectic schedule. The man literally plays Thor and is one of the most famous people alive.

A quick glance at his IMDB account will tell you the gorgeous man has four upcoming projects in the works, but his parenting skills aren’t under scrutiny.

In fact, while Hemsworth does lead a beachy lifestyle in Bryon Bay, he is still spotted at premiers and parties. He was recently spotted at a Magic Millions polo and showjumping show and the AACTA awards.

Yet no one is wondering where his three children are or questioning his parenting skills. So why do we do that to women?

It will never stop amazing me how quickly we decide that once women are mothers, they aren’t allowed to be anything else. Meanwhile, men get to become dads and aren’t expected to shred their identities and work commitments.

Don’t believe me? Kyle Sandilands became a father last year and didn’t take paternity leave instead he kept broadcasting from his house and no one argued that he wasn’t spending enough time with his child.

Meanwhile, Wilson goes to one party and her parenting skills are immediately questioned.

Kyle Sandilands with his beautiful son. Source: Instagram

Chrissy and John went to dinner but only one was shamed. Picture: Amy Sussman/Getty

Wilson’s shaming isn’t even anything new Chrissy Teigen got shamed when she was spotted dining out with her husband John Legend only a month after their daughter Luna was born.

blockquote class="twitter-tweet">

Funny there's no dad-shaming. When both of us go out to dinner, shame both of us so Chrissy doesn't have to take it all. We'll split it.

— John Legend (@johnlegend) May 11, 2016

At the time, Legend took to Twitter and wrote, “Funny there’s no dad-shaming.”

It was a perfectly equal situation, two parents of the same newborn were at dinner, and only one of them was shamed for it – that is hypocrisy at its finest. This happened over eight years ago but clearly things aren’t getting better.

So, next time a celebrity mum is at the bottom of a mum-shaming pile on, it’s worth asking the question – would a new father be called out for the same thing? If the answer is no, then shut up and let a girl live.