Entertainment

Christina Ricci Says Child Stardom Was An ‘Escape’ From Her ‘Horrendous Childhood’: ‘Real Life Is Worse’

   DailyWire.com
Christina Ricci
Robin L Marshall/WireImage via Getty Images

Christina Ricci said in an interview published Wednesday that not only did she have a good experience as a child star, but also that her early Hollywood experience was preferable to her home life.

The 43-year-old actress told Entertainment Tonight that her rise to fame as Wednesday Addams in “The Addams Family” (1991) represents a cherished time in her life.

“When I first started, and still as adults, this career has always been an escape for me,” Ricci told the publication. “As a kid, it was an escape from, like, a horrendous childhood and just getting to go away – be in hotels and be on set and be with other adults and be valued. All the little things that sort of are negative about the industry and the career, they’ve always been things that I’ve just been like, ‘Well, real life is worse.'”

The “Yellowjackets” star said that while some parts of being an entertainer are “difficult to navigate,” she believes that on the whole, Hollywood has been improving. 

“I also think that I really benefited from this place in time where gradually things have been getting better and are so much better now. We benefit from all the amazing work that younger generations are doing,” she continued.

This isn’t the first time Ricci alluded to abusive treatment during childhood. The actress told The Guardian in 2022, “People write things like, ‘Christina talks about the trauma of fame.’ It’s like, no. When I am talking about childhood trauma, I am not talking about the trauma of fame. There’s been childhood stuff, child abuse in my family.”

Even though Ricci has positive feelings about her experience as a child star, she said she would not allow her son to get into the business. 

“I feel it’s child abuse to make your child famous,” she told The New York Post in 2018. “Once he’s an adult, and he studies, and he understands that it’s an art form, then he can pursue an acting career if he’d like.”

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“Being famous is not good for children, it’s just not. We have a million examples of why it’s not good for children,” she continued. “I’m just not going to risk it. Why would you put the most precious thing in your life up for that?”

Ricci finalized her divorce from film producer James Heerdegen in 2022, two years after their breakup. Both spouses accused each other of domestic abuse and a custody battle over their 8-year-old son Freddie is ongoing. 

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