tIan Somerhalder and Nikki Reed took to social media on Saturday, September 23, to respond to criticism over their comments about birth control.
The couple — who welcomed their first child, a daughter named Bodhi, in July — were slammed on social media earlier this week after the Vampire Diaries star said that he flushed his wife’s contraceptive pills down the toilet in order to start their family.
“To anyone who has been affected by reproductive coercion, we are deeply sorry,” the pair wrote in a statement posted on Somerhalder’s Instagram account and Reed’s Twitter feed. “That is an extremely serious issue, and women’s rights is something that is incredibly important to both of us. It is something we’ve been very vocal about, and something that is very close to our hearts.”
“We never expected a lighthearted interview we did poking fun at EACH OTHER and how WE chose together to get pregnant, a goofy moment in Barcelona with our two best friends and the anticipation of the start of our journey together as we went from two to three, to turn into something representing a very serious matter,” they continued. “However, if this somehow sheds light on a topic that definitely needs mainstream attention, then we are grateful for the unintended consequence. It’s a shame that outlets chose this as their way into a very serious discussion, as we are certainly not qualified to be the faces of this topic.”
“We are two happily married people who chose TOGETHER to have a baby,” they said in conclusion. “The end. Love, Nikki and Ian.”
As previously reported, the Twilight actress, 29, said in a joint video interview on Dr. Berlin’s Informed Pregnancy podcast that Somerhalder, 38, “threw out all my birth control pills.”
“We decided that we wanted to have children together, and it was just time,” the Lost alum explained. “But unbeknownst to poor Nikki, she didn’t realize that I was going to go in her purse and take out her birth control. By the way, it was the beginning of the pack, so I had to pop all those suckers out.”
Somerhalder then said that Reed was “freaking out” as he flushed the pills down the toilet. “Now thinking about it, I guess I kind of decided [to start a family],” he quipped.
Some fans took this to mean that Somerhalder had forced his wife into getting pregnant. Reed responded to the backlash, addressing a writer in a tweet on Friday, September 22. “Don’t talk about consent to me,” she wrote. “How dare you try to cast a dark shadow over one of the happiest most memorable days of my life — you’re not only disrespecting me but my baby.”
“We should be talking about these things, but using a funny interview between married ppl &twisting it to perpetuate gossip is irresponsible,” she added in another tweet. “WOMEN’S RIGHTS MATTER, so please don’t use false narratives to highlight issues that are truly important!”
Sign up for Us Weekly's free, daily newsletter and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!
For access to all our exclusive celebrity videos and interviews – Subscribe on YouTube!
