'Friends' star Courteney Cox admits regret about how she raised teenage daughter
"Friends" star Courteney Cox has some parenting regrets when it comes to her now 19-year-old daughter, Coco, including wishing she had been a little more strict.
Courteney Cox has some regrets as a parent to her now teenage daughter, Coco.
During her interview on Minnie Driver’s podcast, "Minnie Questions," she spoke about wishing she had taken a slightly different approach when Coco was younger.
"I wish so bad I could have realized in the moment a way to protect Coco from things that I didn’t, because of my own issues, whether it was codependency or seeing her in relationships with people I knew this was not good," Cox said.
"But I didn’t want to step in, even though I knew something wasn’t right, because she would get so mad at me," she continued. "She [would say], ‘Let me deal with it mom, you don’t understand.’ And I did understand, and I should have [trusted] myself and I should have stepped in. So, with certain things about myself, she saw them."
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Cox also noted that she sees some things about herself in her daughter that she wished she was "firmer" about.
"I'm not saying I made her who she is, but you do see things in other people, whether it's just always taking care of people and being the nicest person," the "Friends" star said. "And I mean, that's one of the things with age, I've learned to say no, I've learned to have boundaries. But I mean, earlier on when she was a kid, or not even that many years ago, I wish I'd been a firmer parent."
The 59-year-old shares Coco with her "Scream" co-star and ex-husband, David Arquette.
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In 2022, Cox spoke about boundaries with her then 17-year-old daughter, admitting to People magazine, "We fight. I've learned that boundaries are important and to keep them because I know it makes her feel safe. But I'm not always good with boundaries. I get worn out."
She added, "You've got to pick your battles and decide what is important."
Cox also told the outlet, "I was really close to my mom. She was my best friend. And I have that with Coco. She tells me everything."
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Although her daughter has grown up in the Hollywood scene with two very famous parents, Cox is proud that she takes a simpler approach to some things.
"Thank God, Coco isn’t into really high-end clothes or designer anything. She doesn’t care about labels. And thank God that she shops for her clothes on Amazon, because she could be this other kid [like] ‘I want fab Gucci.' And you’d have to spend your whole life saying no," Cox said on "Minnie Questions."
She gave an example, saying, "she’ll say, ‘Mom, I have bought five pairs of Mary Janes on Amazon and they just keep breaking. Would it be ok if I got just one really nice pair?’ And I’m like, ‘Oh s---, yeah.’ And she’ll say, ‘Like from Steve Madden.’ And I’m like 'Sure Coco, go ahead.'"
"I’m so lucky!" Cox added with a laugh.