Four celebs who opened up about their abusive parents

From Angelina Jolie to Missy Elliott, these celebs have been open about their relationships with toxic parents

On Wednesday, singer Britney Spears spoke up about her 13-year long battle to end an abusive conservatorship, in which the reins of her life are in the hands of her father. She delivered her remarks by cellphone, her first public statements concerning the court-approved association that was first put in place in 2008 when she suffered a psychological health breakdown. “I truly believe this conservatorship is abusive,” Spears mentioned, her phrases tumbling out so quick the choose requested her to decelerate. “My dad and anyone involved in this conservatorship and my management who played a key role in punishing – ma`am, they should be in jail.”

Her revelations about the abuse she has faced at the hands of her father have led to a conversation about how much parents should be allowed to control their child’s life, especially when the child is an adult. Spears isn’t the only celebrity that has spoken up about abusive parents, with prominent figures such as Drew Barrymore and  Angelina Jolie having openly spoken about their dysfunctional relationships with their toxic guardians in the past. With the help of The Talko, we have compiled a list of celebrities who have openly discussed having abusive parents.  

1. Angelina Jolie 

Jolie comes from a celebrity family, with her mother Marcia Lynn being an actor and humanitarian, and her father Jon Voight having won an Oscar and four Golden Globes for his acting.  Jolie has been open about her complicated relationship with her father, whom she claims left the family in 1977, something that she has found difficult to forgive. Jolie made an attempt at reconciliation but the efforts were in vain. 

2. Drew Barrymore 

Drew Barrymore has been very open about her life as a child actor and her difficult relationship with her mother, whom she claims used her fame for her own benefit. Barrymore went to rehab at the age of 14, after being exposed to drugs by her mother at a very young age. She has explained that her mother used her to get into fancy nightclubs with no regard for Barrymore’s safety. The actor has shared that their relationship remains complicated and rocky. 

3. Jennifer Aniston

The Friends actor was born to actor parents John Anniston and Nancy Dow. Anniston has claimed that her father left the family when he started becoming more famous, and her relationship with her mother has been famously complicated. Dow appeared in talk shows to aid the gossip around her daughter and also published a memoir titled Mother and Daughter to Friends: a Memoir, in which she shares details about their relationship, making Anniston’s private life very public. The two remain civil. 

4. Missy Elliott 

The rapper started her career in 1989 and has been fairly open about her difficult childhood and her far-from-perfect relationship with her family. She has shared her experience of physical abuse at the hands of her 16-year-old cousin when Elliott was eight. The rapper also had a physically abusive father, taking out his anger on Elliott and her mother. “You remember it as if it was yesterday,” she shared in an interview once.