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Brooklyn Peltz Beckham has addressed his estrangement from his parents in a dramatic social media post, saying he had “remained silent for years”.
A lengthy statement shared on the 26-year-old’s Instagram story revealed details about his fallout with parents Sir David Beckham and Lady Victoria Beckham, which had been the subject of public speculation for years.
He wrote: “I do not want to reconcile with my family. I’m not being controlled, I’m standing up for myself for the first time in my life.”
So what does Brooklyn claim happened between him and his family? Here’s everything you need to know.
Brooklyn addresses long-rumoured wedding dress drama
Brooklyn married his actress and model wife Nicola Peltz, who is the daughter of American billionaire businessman Nelson Peltz in 2022. It was a lavish April event in Palm Beach rumoured to have cost millions.
In the Instagram post shared with his 16 million followers, Brooklyn, who now lives in LA, said there were tensions around the wedding.
Brooklyn Beckham and Nicola Peltz in 2022. Pic: Reuters
He wrote: “My parents have been trying endlessly to ruin my relationship since before my wedding, and it hasn’t stopped.
“My mum cancelled making Nicola’s dress in the eleventh hour despite how excited she was to wear her design, forcing her to urgently find a new dress.”
Peltz’s Valentino Couture gown was the subject of media speculation just after the wedding, with reports suggesting she had chosen to wear it instead of one designed by Lady Victoria.
In an interview with The Sunday Times that year, Peltz addressed the rumours by repeatedly saying there was “no feud” and adding: “No family is perfect!”
She said that after some chats about the dress on a “text chain”, Lady Victoria called her mother and said she couldn’t make the dress because her “atelier couldn’t make the dress in time”.
At the time, Brooklyn had called the feud rumours “ridiculous”.
Victoria ‘highjacked’ first dance, Brooklyn claims
Much of Brooklyn’s post centred around his wedding day and his parents’ supposed disapproval.
He claimed they “repeatedly pressured and attempted to bribe me into signing away the rights to my name” in the lead-up.
He also claimed Lady Victoria called him “evil” during a row over seating at the wedding, suggesting she had taken issue with the couple’s decision to have their grandmothers sit with them at their table, with both sets of parents at adjacent tables.
He went on to claim his mother “hijacked” his first dance with his wife, and that she “danced very inappropriately on me in front of everyone”.
He added that he had never felt more “uncomfortable or humiliated” in his life.
Brooklyn suggested such experiences were the reason he and his wife decided to renew their vows last year – a service where Peltz’s family was present while the Beckhams were absent.
“We wanted to renew our vows so we could create new memories of our wedding day that bring us joy and happiness, not anxiety and embarrassment,” Brooklyn wrote.
The Beckhams, left to right: Mia Regan, Romeo, Cruz, Harper, David, Victoria, Brooklyn and Nicola Peltz, at a 2023 London premier. Pic: AP
Brooklyn ‘rejected’ amid dad’s 50th birthday absence
Brooklyn’s absence from his family’s public events last year made the rumours of a rift even louder.
It stole headlines when he wasn’t there for his father’s extravagant 50th birthday celebrations last year – another thing Brooklyn addressed in his post.
Brooklyn and David Beckham at a premiere in London in 2019. Pic: AP
He claimed that despite family tensions, he and his wife travelled to London for Sir David’s birthday but “were rejected for a week as we waited in our hotel room trying to plan quality time with him”.
“He refused all of our attempts, unless it was at his big birthday party with a hundred guests and cameras at every corner,” he wrote, adding: “When he finally agreed to see me, it was under the condition that Nicola wasn’t invited. It was a slap in the face.”
He claimed his family later travelled to his home city of LA and “refused” to see him.
‘Brand Beckham comes first’
Brooklyn went on to claim that his family “values public promotion and endorsements above all else”.
“Brand Beckham comes first,” he wrote. “Family ‘love’ is decided by how much you post on social media.
“Since the moment I started standing up for myself with my family, I’ve received endless attacks from my parents, both privately and publicly, that were sent to the press on their orders.”
Near the conclusion of the scathing six-page statement, Brooklyn said: “The narrative that my wife controls me is completely backwards. I have been controlled by my parents for most of my life.”
Sky News arts and entertainment correspondent Katie Spencer says the distance between Brooklyn and his family had been interpreted in the media as evidence of his wife’s controlling influence, and suggests that the post was mainly about challenging that suggestion.
David and Victoria remain coy
The other members of the Beckham family have not responded to Brooklyn’s comments.
Sky News business correspondent Paul Kelso asked Sir David about his son’s statement as he arrived for the World Economic Forum in Switzerland on Tuesday.
Specifically, he asked if he had a message for his son and if he was disappointed that family business was being aired in public.
Sir David refused to comment.
He and Lady Victoria have been formally contacted for comment by Sky News.
