LOS ANGELES — "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" stars Garcelle Beauvais and Lisa Rinna are finally in agreement: They want fans of their show to leave their children out of the drama.
The "Coming to America" actor and "Days of Our Lives" alum struck up an unlikely alliance on social media Tuesday after Beauvais took to Twitter to defend her teenage son Jax, who was targeted by online trolls — more specifically, "middle aged women spamming me with racist and crude comments about my family," Jax said in a statement on Wednesday.
The saga played out amid Beauvais' onscreen drama with co-stars Erika Jayne and Diana Jenkins, Rinna's friends who Beauvais has clashed with on their Bravo reality series.
"I'm usually a very strong woman I've been raised to be strong my life has taught me to be strong but when it comes to my kids! It hurts it's not OK," Beauvais tweeted. "I've been in tears all night"
"[I]t's just a TV show people scream at your TV throw something at your TV but leave our kids alone," she added.
While neither she nor Rinna elaborated on the specifics of the attack, the Daily Mail reported that on Monday Jax shared some of the hurtful responses he received on a recent Instagram photo, imploring the commenters to "leave me alone please" because he's only 14. Many of them focused on his older brother Oliver's struggle with addiction, which Beauvais had mentioned in the show with respect to embattled co-star Jayne's drinking.
Beauvais had Jax and his twin brother Jaid with her ex-husband, producer Mike Nilon. She shares Oliver, 31, with her ex-husband Daniel Saunders. Beauvais' children have all appeared on "Real Housewives," and in one episode Jayne is seen cussing at Jax to leave. She later apologized for her behavior.
Rinna showed her support for Beauvais on her Instagram Story, arguing that the cyberbullying attacks on their children cross the line.
"We are doing a tv show. We try to entertain you—why can't you treat it like wrestling for gods sakes love us —love to hate us," Rinna wrote Tuesday in an Instagram Story. "But leave the kids alone!"
Rinna said that what she's been sent about Jax, Kyle Richards' 14-year-old daughter Portia, Jayne's adult son Tommy and her own kids — Amelia, 21, and Delilah, 24 — is "disgusting and unacceptable."
"They didn't sign up for this. what are you doing. The kids - all of our kids should be off limits so stop it now. Enough is enough," Rinna wrote.
Beauvais reposted Rinna's missive on both Twitter and Instagram, tweeting "This has to stop!!! They're just kids."
By Wednesday morning, Beauvais tweeted a statement from Jax in which he reminded readers that he is "still a kid" and wished "not to be viewed as a fully matured adult, because I am not one."
"It is currently my first week of high school and, instead of enjoying it like most kids at my school, I have to deal with being attacked on social media," the statement said.
He also explained his reluctant decision to make his Instagram account private in the wake of the drama.
"I did not sign up for this show, nor do I have anything to do with the show's drama. I just want to be a normal kid," his statement said. "The purpose of my Instagram account is not for publicity nor the public's gaze, but to be seen by my peers as just another kid. I really wanted to avoid going private, but I just have to at this point. The constant support from everyone makes it much more tolerable.
"However, the middle aged women spamming me with racist and crude comments about my family is not what I expected for my first week of high school. Thank you for all the positive comments. It truly means a lot," he said.
It is unclear if Jax will return to "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." Representatives for the Bravo show and Beauvais did not immediately respond Wednesday to the L.A. Times' requests for comment.
———
