What to Know
Not all of the kids who came out of TLC family reality shows have written books or spilled the tea in other ways. However, the ones who have are not shy about sharing the actual reality of the life they lived while being followed by cameras constantly. Now, Collin Gosselin of Jon & Kate Plus 8 fame is speaking out about his time on reality TV, living with his mother, Kate Gosselin, and the alleged abuse he suffered as a child.
Collin released the memoir In the Shadow of Eight and, ahead of its Oct. 13, 2026 release, he spoke to Good Morning America about what life was like for him amid his reportedly tumultuous relationship with mom Kate. As a child, Collin was sent to a mental health facility, which Kate has briefly spoken about and Collin goes into detail about in his memoir. But there is much more about Kate specifically that people now expect her to answer for.
Colin Gosselin spoke out about his mother again.
@gma Collin Gosselin is opening up about his time on “Jon & Kate Plus 8” and the abuse he alleges he suffered at the hands of his mother. #jonkateplus8 #kategosselin #jongosselin ♬ original sound – Good Morning America
When Collin spoke to Good Morning America, he shared that his life on TV “was a lie.” He alleged that he endured abuse at the hands of his mother and that he was too afraid to admit abuse to child services when he was taken out of school in the fourth grade. Collin, along with his seven siblings, found fast reality TV fame when their family was given the TLC show depicting the life of now-discovered couple Jon and Kate raising their sextuplets and twin daughters.
Now, according to Collin, he does not have a relationship with the majority of his siblings, but he would be willing to reconnect with them.
“No matter what’s happened or what was said, no matter how things look from the outside, I love you,” he said, as a message to his siblings with whom he does not have contact. “I always have and always will.”
Although Collin is open to rekindling things with his siblings, he has more to say about Kate than anyone else.
He also made allegations about mistreatment while filming ‘Jon & Kate Plus 8.‘
@jayshetty @Collin Gosselin ♬ original sound – Jay Shetty
In Collin’s memoir, he alleged that once, Kate yanked his ear so hard and pulled him across a room that a teacher noticed the injury.
“When my mom was angry, she would grab me by the ear,” Collin wrote in the memoir. “Sometimes it ended there. Sometimes it didn’t. A snappy pull could turn into a smack to the side of my head, like a punctuation mark.”
He also wrote that Kate once told him, following her divorce from Jon, “Your dad doesn’t want to see you anymore.”
Collin also alleged that, although there had been a Children and Youth Services investigation, he felt that it was safer for him not to say anything that would get Kate or himself into trouble.
ALSO READ: Kate Gosselin Speaks Out After Collin Announces His Tell-All Memoir
“Years later, I would discover there had been many more complaints,” he wrote. “Documents, reports, concerns raised by people who saw pieces of what was happening. My dad received paperwork for fourteen complaints made to CYS against my mom.”
Collin also alleged that Kate built a wall around his bed in the basement of their home to keep him segregated from his siblings. She also allegedly took away his toys and installed baby monitors to watch him while he was locked in the room, his “holding cell,” from the outside. Kate has not confirmed these allegations, and no formal investigation has been announced at this time.
People are questioning where Jon Gosselin was during this time.
On a Reddit thread about Collin’s serious allegations about Kate, users shared questions about what he alleged happened to him as a child. Others questioned where Jon was, even if Kate and Jon had been divorced at the time of the alleged abuse.
One user claimed, “He didn’t want custody. He has specifically stated he accepted that the kids who wanted to see him did and he figured he wouldn’t push it on the others. He stopped seeing Mady, Cara, Collin, and Alexis very soon after the divorce. He pretty much only continued any relationship with Hannah, Joel, Aaden, and Leah.”
Another wrote, “I mean obviously Kate has played a role in manipulating the kids, but the fact that 6/8 are still on her side has always said to me there’s much more behind the scenes we don’t know about.”
But mostly, these are theories that people who have followed the family for years have come up with based on what Jon, Kate, and some of their kids have said.
If you suspect child abuse, you can call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453 (1-800-4-A-Child) or go to Childhelp.org. The hotline is available 24/7.
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