Anne Hathaway Says She Regrets Posting A Photo Of Her Son Online

Deciding to share photos of your little ones online is an individual and personal decision. Some parents are free flowing with photos while others (like myself) are hesitant in sharing their kid’s faces on social media.

Actress Anne Hathaway recently posted a photo (in fact the first and only photo) of her one year old son Jonathan Rosebanks Shulman (or JRS for short) on Instagram and says she instantly regretted it.

It’s a cute pic of him from behind, wearing an adorable lion-print onesie, watching his mum give a talk about paid parental leave to the UN. Hathaway was careful about the photo she posted – you can’t even see young JRS’ face – but as soon as it was “live” she wished she’d never posted it.

JRS watching Mommy give her speech at the UN yesterday #forourboys #forourgirls #forthefuture #loveislove #parentsareparents #paidparental #iwd #ppl @unwomen

“I don’t know that I’ll ever do it again. I had never posted a photo of my son, and I decided to post a shot of the back of his head, and almost as soon as I’d done it, I wished that I hadn’t,” she said.

“I felt like I had broken some kind of a seal in inviting people into my life. And even though I felt as though I had done it in as protective a way as I could, even though it was a moment I was incredibly proud of, I don’t know that I’ll ever do it again.”

Perhaps the reason Hathaway is so wary of social media is because in 2013 (the year she won a Golden Globe for her work in Les Miserables) she was the target of articles with headlines like “Why everyone hates Anne Hathaway”. Then, after giving birth, she faced criticism of her “post baby body” which left her in tears.

Just because she chooses not to share photos of her son it doesn’t mean she’s not proud of him and his milestones. But rather it’s because she can’t trust the world enough to permanently put photos of her child online – something so many of us do without a second thought.

“I’m a big believer that you gotta mess things up sometimes to really see them properly, so if I made a mistake or I messed up, I know how I feel about it much better now,” Hathaway shared.

“Instagram, when I first started, it was so much fun. And it was a great way to be silly and kind of do things off the cuff. And now, because of the time we live in, I think words and pictures are carrying a much greater weight. Or, much less depending on how you engage with it.”

What do you think of Hathaway’s decision to keep her son away from the public eye? Does she have a right to feel concerned?

Photos: Instagram