Jill Zarin’s daughter, Ally Shapiro, slammed “The Real Housewives Salt Lake City” for using Mary Cosby’s son’s drug addiction as a “storyline” during Wednesday night’s episode.
“Maybe because I’m a former ‘housewife kid’ I had a completely different take on this scene. I don’t think it’s ok that this was filmed like this,” Ally, who has appeared on “RHONY,” wrote on her Instagram Story Thursday, accompanied by a clip of Cosby having a tearful conversation with her son, Robert Jr., about his pill addiction.
“I think that it should have been once he was in or out of rehab, with a therapist etc. He doesn’t seem like a public person and this will follow him the rest of his life.”
“While it was a powerful moment between a mom and her son – its a moment I think should have been shared off camera, or after he was healthy,” she argued.
Shapiro, 32, concluded, “These are real people, and a 21 year old kid who needs help. I was you to think – a storyline, and what cost?”
Page Six reached out to Zarin’s rep for comment on her daughter’s statement but did not immediately hear back. We did not immediately receive a response from Cosby’s representative, either.
During the intimate conversation on “RHOSCL” Wednesday night, Robert Jr., 21, confessed to abusing a variety of substances, including Adderall, the anxiety medication Xanax and the opioid painkiller Oxycontin.
He also revealed he would separately mix Xanax with acid, molly and cocaine.
“You know the regular, 30 milligram Oxys?” he asked his famous mother. “I noticed this was like a turning point for me was, like, I was taking 10 at once, and I couldn’t even feel it. I couldn’t feel it at all.”
Cosby, 52, was visibly upset to hear her son admit he abused drugs but promised him she would not judge and would “try to help” him as long as he was ready to work on his issues.
Stressing the seriousness of the issue, she cried, “You’re blessed! You wake up every morning. Every day’s a new day, a blessed day, [and] to waste it to get high when God wakes you up every single day, you know how many people didn’t wake up today? You will die.”
Her son admitted he at one point hoped to die but refrained from ending his life because of her.
“You’re my friend, you’re my son, you’re my gift,” the Bravolebrity responded. “God gave you to me. You’re the only thing that ever made me happy.”
Cosby shared a positive update about her son’s recovery while speaking to Page Six earlier this month.
“Robert is steady … which for me is healthy,” she explained. “He’s working on himself, on telling lies, he’s working on himself, on being honest with me and not trying to deceive me, and so that right there, I think just those little changes has bettered our relationship, because that’s more trust, more love and loving me in the right way, not taking advantage of mom.”
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Helpline at 800-662-4357.
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call or text the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988.
