Megan Fox: The Vital Role Of A Stepparent In A Child’s Life – And What Everyone Involved Needs To Do In Order To Create A Healthy, Happy, And Safe Environment For The Children

Getting to write about ‘Mom’, the television series that starred Anna Faris and Allison Janney as (the very dysfunctional) mother and daughter, made me think of the hardships of parenting and co-parenting with an ex. ‘Mom’ was certainly about the hardships of parenting, but not co-parenting, though the topic was mentioned and showed in glimpses through Christy’s, played by Faris, eyes as she co-parented her young son with her ex-husband. Faris, on the other hand, does co-parent with an ex; with her ex-husband, Chris’s Pratt, and his current wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger, who’s the daughter of Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Pratt faced criticism for his treatment of Faris post-divorce, especially after he remarried. Reasons for the criticism included him not including Faris in his social media posts wishing her a happy Mother’s Day, but never forgetting of Schwarzenegger and wishing her everything and more despite him having a child with Faris. Another reason was for Pratt writing on social media that he was grateful to have healthy children with Schwarzenegger, given the fact that his son with Faris struggled with health issues as he was born prematurely. As someone who wasn’t born healthy, I can honestly say that it’s the stupidest thing to ever criticize a parent for. Every parent is grateful to have a healthy child; and if the child isn’t healthy, the love they have for the child isn’t any less – for him included.

Faris herself has praised Pratt, as well as Schwarzenegger, for the co-parenting relationship that they’d built for their son. She and Pratt have worked to maintain a close bond for the sake of their child, even living within close proximity. She told Laura Wasser on her podcast, ‘Divorce Sucks!’, ‘Grudge-holding is not something that Chris and I do. So, we wanted to make sure, of course, that Jack was happy, but that we were happy and supportive of each other and that we could have this fantasy idea of, do we all spend Christmas together? Do we all vacation together? How do we make sure that everybody that we love feels safe, and that we also respect the love we have for each other?’

This reminded me a great deal of the co-parenting relationship between Megan Fox and her ex-husband, Brian Austin Green, as well as their new respective partners, Fox’s now-ex-boyfriend and father to her fourth baby, Machine Gun Kelly, and his partner and mother to his fifth child, Sharna Burgess. Green also has a son, Kassius Lijah Marcil-Green, with ex-girlfriend, Vanessa Marcil. Over the years, Marcil had some not-so-very-nice things to say about Green, and called him an absent father. Green suffered from vertigo during his son’s younger years, which made it difficult for him to see his son. In a September 2023 episode of his podcast, ‘Oldish’, the ‘Beverly Hills 90210’ actor opened up of his co-parenting regrets. Burgess, on her part, said during the episode, ‘Those years that he wasn’t able to go see Kassisus, Vanessa made no effort to make sure Brian got time with him. Instead, she painted him as an absent father who chose not to be around for him. And I’m sure that information was fed to Kass, and I can’t imagine how damaging that was for him.’

Green added to it, ‘To then find out after the fact that at the point when I started getting better, that she then was painting it that I had abandoned Kass during that time, when the reality was I was dealing with such brain fog in what I was going through. It would’ve meant so much if Vanessa had decided ‘Hey, I’m going to make sure while you’re going through this that your son can still get to your house and see you.’ That would’ve just made an incredible difference in the situation. But that’s not what went down, that’s not how it happened.’ As for his current co-parenting relationship with Fox, Green said, ‘We coparent really well together. When we need to, we communicate really well, we are open to things, we don’t take things personally. It is my goal, and I think it’s her goal as well, that the kids are in as healthy environment as they can be in.’ Burgess added, ‘We are lucky because we have a great relationship. I think what’s so important is we have made that a priority, for us to be able to interact and have a great time.’

Green previously praised Fox for their co-parenting relationship, as well as her helping co-parent his older son, on social media following Marcil claiming that she’d raised him alone. In a February 2023 Instagram story, Green wrote, ‘So, I can’t tell you all how frustrating it is to read continued lies from a 50+-year-old woman on social media like she is still in high school. She has never in her life been someone to walk the walk. Talk is cheap. Megan and I bust our assess to give Kass a well-rounded childhood since his mom was rarely there. I’m assuming that’s why she posts so much of him now. When will she just GO AWAY.’ I’d also like to add that when Fox was active on social media, she’d post photos of her spending time with Kassius even well after her divorce from Green.

Firstly, I’d just like to say that manipulating the other parent following a separation due to their illness, no matter what it is, is absolutely disgusting and so dangerous for the child’s psyche. I’d gone through my own personal history of health issues. My husband, also, had gone through his own set of health issues. And I can’t imagine myself or him going against each other and manipulating our child, if we had one during that time, into thinking that the other parent abandoned them. It’s a practice known as parental alienation, which can have severe and lasting negative consequences for both the child and the alienated parent. For children, this manipulation can lead to trauma, emotional instability, and difficulty forming healthy relationships, impacting their sense of self-worth and ability to trust. The alienated parent may experience enduring emotional pain, a sense of loss, and a diminished quality of life. To look at this matter more thoroughly, here’s a more detailed breakdown of how this type of alienation can negatively impact the child(ren) and the alienated parent involved:

Dangers for the Child: 

• Trauma and Emotional Instability: Children who are manipulated into rejecting a parent may experience lasting emotional distress, including anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts. 
• Distorted Sense of Self: The child’s sense of self-worth can be damaged as they are forced to choose between parents, often leading to feelings of guilt and shame. 
• Difficulty with Relationships: The experience of being manipulated can make it difficult for children to form and maintain healthy relationships later in life. 
• Loss of Trust: The child may struggle with trust issues, both with the alienated parent and with others, due to the betrayal they have experienced. 
• Emotional Abuse: Parental alienation is considered a form of emotional abuse and can have devastating long-term effects on the child’s mental health and well-being. 

Dangers for the Alienated Parent: 

• Enduring Emotional Pain: The alienation can cause significant emotional distress and a sense of loss for the alienated parent. 
• Impact on Quality of Life: The ongoing pain and grief associated with the alienation can affect the alienated parent’s overall quality of life. 
• Strain on Relationships: The alienation can create tension and conflict within the wider family network, making it difficult for the alienated parent to maintain relationships with other family members. 
• Long-Term Legal and Financial Issues: Prolonged legal battles and disputes related to parental alienation can have lasting financial and social consequences for both the alienated parent and the child. 

Kassius himself never spoke of his relationship with his father publicly, but they’ve spent a lot of time together as of late, as seen in photos posted on Instagram. They even starred in a movie together. And if you look at paparazzi shots from when he was a young boy, we know that he did, in fact, spend a lot of time together with Green and Fox as a family. In 2023, Green publicly spoke with Lance Bass, former N’SYNC member who’s also gay, about supporting his son through his sexuality, as well as his process of trying to understand him. Then again, who the f*ck am I to know anything? In 2024, when a fan claimed that Fox never defended Marcil, and that she was the catalyst behind her son’s broken relationship with his father, Marcil was quick to defend Fox. She responded, ‘Not true babe. [Megan Fox] was 17 … and still has taken responsibility for her actions. She has apologized to both me and our child. She stated she is ‘disgusted’ by her behavior. However, it wasn’t her job to keep a grown man/biological parent in his son’s life.’

It’s all messy, and it doesn’t even end there, because there’s also Machine Gun Kelly to add in the mix. Green and MGK probably never, ever got along since MGK started dating Fox in 2020. It was made public when news broke that Fox had broken up with MGK while she was pregnant. Green publicly expressed his disapproval of MGK’s behavior, suggesting that he should grow up. In February, he posted an Instagram story on MGK which read, ‘Bro. Just be honest for once in your life. Stop caring so much about how you’re perceived that you will try and drag other people.’ And just days before his baby with Fox was born, Green posted a screenshot of MGK’s private message to him. He wrote, ‘Stop asking when our child is gonna be born. you the FEDS. You chose the wrong one to f*ck with.’ He then proceeded to demand that Green apologize to him for ‘speaking on my name in public,’ called him a child actor, and continued with ‘ “Go back to cereal commercials.’ Green captioned the screenshot, ‘I didn’t know ‘child actor’ was something bad. Leo, careful. He may be coming for you next.’ MGK, who opened his own coffee shop called 27 Club Coffee, didn’t end the feud there. In April, he launched a new drink which referenced Green. The lounge’s social media page posted, ‘NEW DRINK ALERT: CHILD ACTOR MARGARITA! We put a childish twist on this margarita meant for those days when you just don’t wanna act like an adult. 9021-OMG.’ The drink is described as sour, soft, and basic.

Fox gave birth to a baby girl whose name wasn’t made public…at least as of the publishing of this blog entry, and she’s been staying quiet on the entire ordeal. Burgess, on the other hand, had a lot to say. She wrote in an Instagram story, ‘That was about the equivalent of a dog pissing on its territory making it known it’s back in the area. So eloquently put too. Bravo. Our kids are so excited about the arrival of their baby sibling and we are excited FOR them. They have been asking nearly every day of their arrival for about a month now. Naturally when they ask us to find out how mama is doing, we say no problem and do just that. Being a step parent requires (among other things) selflessness, empathy, loyalty, honesty, an open heart and patience. If these are not qualities you consider yourself to have or be able to develop, than [sic] you should ask yourself if you deserve to be in their lives. Because they deserve the absolute best.’

MGK is also a father to a 15 year old daughter, Casie, from a previous relationship. I myself only got to know MGK as an artist when his collaboration with Camila Cabello, ‘Bad Things’. It was nice to see them recently reuniting at event. One thing I can say about MGK is that he might be a pretty sh*tty person, and he might’ve done and said some sh*tty, questionable things, but he’s a damn good father. And by sh*tty, questionable things, an example of it is the 2012 tweet MGK made about Eminem’s then-16-year-old daughter, Hailie Mathers, where he called her ‘hot’. Eminem didn’t take that statement lightly. In 2015, MGK claimed that Eminem banned him from Shade 45, a SiriusXM radio station owned by Eminem. In 2018, Eminem released Kamikaze, including the diss track, ‘Not Alike’, aimed at MGK. That same year, MGK responded with his own diss track, ‘Rap Devil’. And it’s not over yet. The feud continues with both artists making indirect or direct diss tracks in their music and interviews, as reported by various sources. Funny enough, Megan Fox starred in Eminem’s music video for ‘Love The Way You Lie’, which featured Rihanna.

With all that said, considering his older daughter is now 15 years old, I wonder how he’d react if some random called her hot on social media. But again, no matter what anyone says about MGK, whose real name is Colson Baker, I don’t think anyone could ever deny that he’s a damn good father. While making an appearance on the YouTube series, ‘Life Lessons’, in 2015, MGK said of being a father to his daughter, ‘As much as a f— up people say I am, I pray that I have the connection I didn’t have with my parents with my kid. When I’m with her, nothing else matters. If it was a mistake, own up. It’s not gonna be a mistake when you see that beautiful little girl pop up and you see those breaths come.’ When MGK appeared on Logan Paul’s podcast, ‘Unpaulsive’ in 2024, the then-expecting-dad asked MGK for parenting advice, to which he said, ‘Everything that you do from the day that she is conceived to the day that she dies — like, everything — will have an effect on her. So always try to watch the tone of your voice. Make sure that you keep that girl close to you. My daughter came to me, and she was just like, ‘I just need your hug. Like, there’s nothing like my dad’s hug.’ I was just like, ‘Oh my God, bro, don’t start.’ She hugged me, and while she was hugging me, I was just like [wiping away tears], ‘Man.’ You’re the first man she’s ever gonna be in love with. No matter what anybody does in her life, no matter who she marries, you’re always going to be the safe place for your daughter. So give her that love that so many young girls and grown women out here don’t get to have.’

The two men got choked up while talking about the realities of being a girl dad, and I have to admit, I did too. As an adult woman now, I can honestly say that even though I’m married and have a family of my own, my dad is my safe space. He’s always been, especially in my complicated relationship with my mom in my childhood and adolescence. In a general sense, fathers play a crucial told in a child’s development, providing emotional support, setting positive examples, and contributing to their academic success, confidence, and overall well-being. Fathers play a unique role in nurturing their children’s emotional growth, promoting empathy, and encouraging independence. Furthermore, their involvement in a child’s life can lead to improved academic performance and cognitive skills. But to break it down more thoroughly:

Emotional Support and Well-being: 

• Emotional Security:Fathers provide a sense of security and stability, helping children feel loved and valued. 
• Self-Esteem:Supportive fathers contribute to a child’s high self-esteem and confidence, making them feel capable and resilient. 
• Emotional Guidance:Fathers help children learn to navigate and manage their emotions, fostering emotional intelligence. 
• Empathy Development:Involved fathers can facilitate the development of empathy in their children. 

Role Modeling and Influence: 

• Positive Role Model:Fathers serve as role models in behavior, work ethic, and relationships, particularly shaping a child’s understanding of masculinity. 
• Setting Boundaries:Fathers help children understand expectations and boundaries, promoting responsible behavior and decision-making. 
• Career Aspirations:Fathers can influence their children’s career choices and aspirations through their own work and life experiences. 

Academic Success and Cognitive Development: 

• Increased Academic Performance:Fathers’ involvement in a child’s life is associated with better academic performance and cognitive skills. 
• Cognitive Skills:Fathers encourage children to take risks and face challenges, promoting cognitive development and problem-solving skills. 

Other Important Contributions: 

• Social Development:Fathers help children build social skills and relationships by interacting with them both inside and outside the family. 
• Physical Development:Fathers often engage in more physical play, which can aid in motor skill development and physical fitness. 
• Different Perspectives:Fathers provide children with a unique perspective on the world, enriching their understanding and broadening their horizons. 

So, it’s settled: MGK is actually a wonderful father. Casie is the one single thing that’s brought a softer side in him over the years, and now he has his daughter with Megan Fox to do the same. So this begs the question; how is he as a stepfather? I personally can’t answer this question. The relationship he has with Fox’s kids wasn’t ever made public. They’d been seen together maybe once or twice, but that’s about it. MGK has never spoken about them in interviews, and Fox keeps them fairly private too; unlike her ex-husband.

I personally find it odd, considering Fox and MGK were once very, and when I say very, I mean too, public about their relationship. It seemed that anything I knew about the (former) couple wasn’t ever by choice. They seemed to have been everywhere. The media couldn’t get enough of them. Megan Fox might be quiet about the relationship now, but that certainly wasn’t the case for the first couple of years of their on-and-off union. She gave details that no one even asked her to give. Everything I knew of the (former) couple was out of my comfort zone. Fox referred to her relationship with MGK as a ‘once in a lifetime thing’ and a connection of ‘mythic proportions’. I don’t even know what it means, but ok….

Fox also referred to MGK as her twin flame or twin soul, suggesting a deep and instant connection. She described the intensity of their relationship as overwhelming, using the metaphors of a tsunami or a forest fire. She stated she knew MGK was her soulmate as soon as they met, feeling like she had known him in other lives. Her nicknames for MGK were ‘Cookie’, ‘Buddha’, ‘Booby’. She also said that there’d always be a tether to him, a lasting connection.

On the other side, MGK said that he fell in love for the first time when he met Fox. He also spoke about their shared soul and a deep connection. In his own words, ‘We’re actually two halves of the same soul’. He famously replied with the line, ‘I am weed’, when Fox told him he smelled like weed, which she found charming. He proposed to Fox in 2022, under the same tree they fell in love under, using the phrase, ‘Yes, in this life and every life’, to express his commitment. And let’s not forget how they drank each other’s blood following their engagement.

By February 2023, the engagement was off. They’d been on-and-off ever since, and their relationship as a whole has been very hard to keep up with ever since. I stopped trying, to be honest. They were never really clear of their relationship status, and kept details of their relationship mostly private. When Fox appeared on Alex Cooper’s ‘Call Her Daddy’ podcast in March 2024, she did admit that the engagement was off, but refused to state the status of the relationship. Despite this, she did say that he’d always be in her life no matter what. They appeared to have been back on in the status of their relationship. Throughout 2023 and 2024, they were seen vacationing together and attending public events at each other’s plus one. Through it all, they stopped sharing such intimate details about their relationship. In November 2024, Fox announced her pregnancy. A few weeks later, she announced her breakup with MGK which was caused by Fox finding inappropriate messages on MGK’s phone between him and another woman. And this was exactly when the feud between MGK and Brian Austin Green really began.

Through Megan Fox and MGK’s relationship publicity tour during the first few years of their relationship, they’d both kept their respective children out of the discussions. It wasn’t even known whether MGK even met Fox’s children. Casie, on the other hand, has been seen in Fox’s presence numerous times throughout the years. Only once was MGK seen with Fox’s 3 children when they were all together at Disneyland. So this begs me to discuss the role of a stepparent in a child’s life.

I myself never had any stepparents. My parents have been together for over 40 years. Of course, they had their fair share of ups and downs, but they somehow always pulled through the hardships in their relationship and made things work. My husband has stepparents, but they came a part of his life at a later age, so they didn’t play a huge role in shaping him as a person. I, however, witnessed the importance of stepparents for children through my cousins. What I can say is that a stepparent can play a significant role in a child’s life by providing a strong, supportive relationship, fostering a sense of belonging, and contributing to the child’s well-being. They can offer emotional support, guidance, and positive reinforcement, helping the child navigate challenges and build a strong family unit. Additionally, stepparents can help children develop positive relationships with other adults, strengthening the overall family dynamic. To break it down more thoroughly:

Providing a Secure and Supportive Relationship: 

• Stepparents can offer a sense of stability and security for children, especially in the aftermath of divorce or separation. 
• By building a strong, positive relationship with their stepchild, stepparents can help the child feel loved, valued, and supported, which can positively impact their emotional and psychological well-being. 

2. Fostering a Sense of Belonging: 

• Stepparents can help children feel like they are part of a larger family unit, creating a sense of connection and belonging. 
• This can be achieved through spending quality time together, participating in shared interests, and creating special traditions and memories as a family. 

3. Contributing to Child’s Well-being: 

• Stepparents can play a crucial role in supporting the child’s academic, social, and behavioral development. 
• They can provide guidance, advice, and support, helping the child navigate challenges and achieve their full potential. 

4. Strengthening the Family Dynamic: 

• Stepparents can help strengthen the relationship between their partner and their child, creating a more cohesive family unit. 
• By working together as a team to raise the child, stepparents can build a strong foundation for future relationships and communication. 

5. Providing a Positive Role Model: 

• Stepparents can serve as a positive role model for children, demonstrating healthy relationship dynamics, communication skills, and conflict resolution strategies. 
• This can help children develop a positive self-image and build healthy relationships with others. 

6. Protecting Children: 

• Studies have shown that children are safer in families with stepparents than with unrelated adults. 
• This highlights the importance of having a committed and supportive adult figure in a child’s life. 

I sure do hope that MGK comes to realize that not everything has to be about him. I hope he comes to realize that Brian Austin Green and Sharna Burgess will always be in Megan Fox’s life whether he likes it or not; because at the end of the day, it’s about the kids and THEIR happiness. I hope he can see a good example to her kids too someday. Being so public in trashing the father of your stepchildren isn’t ever the way. Even if he and Megan Fox are together and will never be together as a couple, he’ll always be tied to her children, the children’s father, and their stepmother through his own daughter with Fox. That’s just something he’ll have to understand in order to provide a healthy and happy environment for everyone involved; not just for himself.

He can certainly learn a thing or two, or even three, from Megan Fox. She’s been playing the role of a stepmother since she was 18 years old – when she first began dating Brian Austin Green. In 2010, she opened up to Harper’s Bazaar of her role as a stepmother to Kassius. She said, ‘I am a stepmother to the fullest extent. I have looked after Kassius since he was 3 and he has no memory of life without me. For some reason, no one wants to look at me that way, but I am responsible [for him]. I’ve never struggled with that, from bedtime stories to the school run.’

Being a stepparent is no easy task. In fact. I’d say it’s even harder than being a parent. But if everyone involved works together, puts their feelings aside and pull through their differences for the kids, then everything will be just alright. At the end of the day, EVERYTHING is about the children, and it’s just something MGK has to realize for himself; but most importantly, for the kids.