Emily In Paris star Lily Collins becomes first-time mum through surrogacy
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Lily Collins welcomed her first child with film director husband Charlie McDowell via surrogacy.
PHOTOS: AFP, LILYJCOLLINS/INSTAGRAM
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English-American actress Lily Collins is now a mother.
The 35-year-old star of hit Netflix series Emily In Paris (2020 to present) announced the news with a picture of her baby girl, conceived via surrogacy, on Instagram on Feb 1. This is her first child with her husband, American film director and writer Charlie McDowell.
In the caption of the post, Collins wrote: “Welcome to the centre of our world, Tove Jane McDowell. Words will never express our endless gratitude for our incredible surrogate and everyone who helped us along the way. We love you to the moon and back again.”
Details about the baby, such as her birth date, were not available.
Collins, who is the daughter of English musician Phil Collins, met McDowell, 41, on the set of the movie Gilded Rage – which has yet to be released – in 2019. The couple became engaged the following year and tied the knot in 2021.
Though Lily Collins’ announcement attracted well-wishes and congratulations, it was not exempt from criticism. Multiple netizens derided the couple for conceiving via surrogacy.
One wrote that “surrogacy is the exploitation of poor women by hypocritical, privileged rich people”, while another said: “Renting a woman’s womb should be illegal.”
In response, McDowell defended their choice in a comment left beneath the post: “In regards to the unkind messages about surrogacy and our path to having a baby – it’s okay to not be an expert on surrogacy. It’s okay to not know why someone might need a surrogate to have a child. It’s okay to not know the motivations of a surrogate regardless of what you assume.
“And it’s okay to spend less time spewing hateful words into the world, especially in regards to a beautiful baby girl who has brought a lot of love into people’s lives.”
Surrogacy is not uncommon among Hollywood celebrities. Stars such as socialite Paris Hilton, former celebrity couple Kim Kardashian and Kanye West, and singer-actor Nick Jonas and his actress-wife Priyanka Chopra
