Ashley Tisdale just pulled back the curtain on celebrity mom friendships, and it’s messier than anyone expected.
The actress, who now goes by Ashley French, penned a brutally honest essay for the Cut this week about being systematically excluded from her group of high-profile mom friends.
While she didn’t name names directly, the internet already knows her former squad included stars like Meghan Trainor, Hilary Duff, and Mandy Moore—women who’ve publicly celebrated their “mom squad” on social media for years.
What started as Ashley’s dream “village” of fellow celebrity mothers ultimately became a source of pain, exclusion, and what she now calls toxic behavior.
Finding Her Village—Or So She Thought
After welcoming her first daughter with husband Christopher French, Ashley desperately wanted connection with other mothers navigating similar experiences. When she found her group of celebrity moms, everything seemed perfect.
The women bonded over shared struggles and celebrations of motherhood. Meghan Trainor famously captioned a 2022 group photo: “I have mom friends and I love them.”
For Ashley, these relationships felt like exactly what she needed during one of life’s most transformative seasons.
The Exclusion Started Small—Then Escalated
According to Ashley’s essay titled “Breaking Up With My Toxic Mom Group,” subtle signs of exclusion gradually became impossible to ignore.
Over time, I began to wonder whether that was really true. I remember being left out of a couple of group hangs, and I knew about them because Instagram made sure it fed me every single photo and Instagram Story.
She described attending a dinner party where her seat placement spoke volumes—positioned at the end of the table, physically separated from the other women. The message felt clear: she was on the outside.
Social media became an unwitting accomplice in her hurt, constantly feeding her images of gatherings she wasn’t invited to attend.
Birthday Parties and Weak Excuses
The exclusion reached peak painfulness around celebrations that should have brought joy.
When everyone else attended a birthday dinner together, I was met with excuses as to why I hadn’t been invited. I still don’t get why I wasn’t at the girl hang that they all planned at my daughter’s birthday.
Ashley began recognizing a disturbing pattern within the group’s dynamics.
History Repeating Itself
Looking back with clearer eyes, Ashley realized she wasn’t the first victim of the group’s exclusionary behavior.
During the early days of the group, there was another mom who often wasn’t included. I’d picked up on hints of a weird dynamic, but at the time, I didn’t dwell on it too much. I was just so happy to have found these incredible, smart, funny women. Now it seemed that this group had a pattern of leaving someone out. And that someone had become me.
The realization that there was a systematic pattern made everything more painful. This wasn’t accidental oversight—it was apparently how the group operated.
The Confrontation Via Text
Feeling “totally lost” about why she’d become the target of exclusion, Ashley decided to address the situation directly through text message.
This is too high school for me and I don’t want to take part in it anymore.
Predictably, her honesty didn’t land well with everyone.
The Aftermath Was Awkward and Dismissive
Some members attempted damage control. One sent flowers—then proceeded to ignore Ashley when she sent thanks. Another tried gaslighting her with claims that everyone simply assumed she’d been invited and chose not to attend.
Ashley was careful to clarify her position on the women themselves.
To be clear, I have never considered the moms to be bad people. (Maybe one.) But I do think our group dynamic stopped being healthy and positive — for me, anyway.
That parenthetical “Maybe one” has, unsurprisingly, fueled intense speculation online.
Social Media Sleuthing Reveals Potential Clues
Despite Ashley’s request that “online sleuths” avoid speculation, fans immediately started analyzing her Instagram following list.
What they discovered:
- Ashley still follows Meghan Trainor
- She no longer follows Hilary Duff
- She no longer follows Mandy Moore
While social media unfollows don’t tell the complete story, they often provide breadcrumbs about fractured relationships—especially among celebrities.
Why This Resonates Beyond Celebrity Drama
Ashley’s experience, while playing out among Hollywood elite, mirrors painful social dynamics countless women face in motherhood.
Mom groups can be lifelines or sources of profound loneliness. The pressure to fit in, combined with hormonal changes, sleep deprivation, and identity shifts, makes exclusion particularly devastating during postpartum life.
Research shows strong social connections significantly impact maternal mental health. When those connections turn toxic or exclusionary, mothers experience increased rates of anxiety and depression.
Recognizing Toxic Group Dynamics
Ashley’s story highlights several red flags in friendship groups:
- Rotating exclusion where different members take turns being left out
- Gaslighting when confronted about hurtful behavior
- Physical positioning that symbolizes social hierarchy
- Passive-aggressive gestures like sending flowers then ignoring follow-up
- Vague excuses instead of honest communication
Setting Boundaries Brought Ashley to Tears—And Freedom
Ashley acknowledged the entire situation brought her to tears when it unfolded. Confronting friends about toxic behavior takes tremendous courage, especially when you’re already vulnerable as a new mother.
By naming the dynamic and removing herself from it, she modeled healthy boundary-setting—even when it meant losing relationships she’d valued.
Her willingness to share this story publicly may help other mothers recognize similar patterns in their own lives and feel less alone in making difficult friendship decisions.
Sometimes walking away from toxic relationships—even ones that once felt like your “village”—is the most self-compassionate choice available.