A Timeline Of The Ashley Tisdale Mom Group Drama

Ashley Tisdale French gave moms everywhere permission to leave their toxic mom group, and while this was intended to let us all breathe a collective sigh of relief, it caused more uproar than anything else.

Tisdale French, who penned an article for The Cut (under her married name, Ashley French), called Breaking Up With My Toxic Mom Group wrote, “Mom groups can turn toxic. Not because the moms themselves are toxic people, but because the dynamic shifts into an ugly place with mean-girl behaviour… So if your mom group has gone from lifeline to landmine, give yourself permission to leave.”

The High School Musical star, wellness brand founder and the voice of Candace in Disney show Phineas and Ferb, had frequently been photographed with fellow moms and celebrity friends like Mandy Moore, Hilary Duff, and Meghan Trainor, and internet trollers immediately assumed she was referring to her famous gal pals. With rumours circulating on gossip sites and social media, even the hubbies got involved, with Trainor and Duff’s husbands giving their own take on Tisdale French’s article drama.

In case you missed it all and are wondering what's going on, here's a quick breakdown of how everything happened:

• Late 2025: Tisdale French publishes a blog post on her Substack, By Ashley French, called You're Allowed To Leave Your Mom Group.
• January 1: The Cut publishes an expanded version of the story.
• January 5: Tisdale French's rep denies that the story had anything to do with Trainor, Duff or Moore.
• January 6: Matthew Koma, Duff’s husband (they have two daughters), put on his Instagram Story “When You’re The Most Self-Obsessed Tone Deaf Person On Earth, Other Moms Tend To Shift Focus To Their Actual Toddlers,” accompanied by the subheading, “A Mom Group Tell All Through A Father’s Eyes.”
• January 8: In a TikTok video, Trainor, who shares kids Riley, 4, and Barry, 2, with husband Daryl Sabara (of Spy Kids’ fame), addressed the rumours herself, captioning it “Me finding out about the apparent mom group drama” with some playful tea emojis. She played her latest single, “Still Don’t Care”, in the background, which includes the lyrics, “Let me take a moment think it over, doesn’t touch me at all, I still don't care. Let me check again, nope, I still don't care.” At the same time, TMZ caught up with Sabara on the street, asking him what he had to say about the “mom drama,” to which he replied, “No drama over here. Just trying to keep the kids happy.”
• January 12: Trainor again took to TikTok, where she lip synched the viral sound from Season 5 of Stranger Things where a character says, “Please, you have to believe me,” writing, “Me still trying to convince everyone I’m not involved in the mom group drama” and “I swear I’m innocent.”
• January 14: Mandy Moore's interview with mental health advocate Cameron Rogers on the Conversations with Cam podcast was released, and the star talks about her friendship with Hilary Duff, saying that she's a boss and "the ultimate mom." She also shared the origin of the now-famous mom group: "So, I think the origin story is all kind of having pandemic babies...[Duff] was just like, 'We need a music class. We need community.' So she started this music class at her house and gathered a group of incredible women, and I brought a few into the fold as well."
• January 22: Leave it to Andy Cohen to reignite a war. While on the host's Bravo talk show, Dylan Efron (Zac's brother) responded to a viewer's questions about Tisdale French's mom group drama. The former Dancing With The Stars competitor defended his brother's High School Musical co-star, saying, “I try to stay out of that, so I don’t know too much. All I know is Ashley, since I was a kid, she’s been so sweet to me. So I can’t envision her doing anything malicious to the mom group. Hopefully, it’s just a misunderstanding? I honestly don’t know what’s going on, though.”
• April 2026: Meghan Trainor told Us Weekly that Ashley Tisdale texted to apologize after Trainor’s name got pulled into the mom-group speculation. She said, "I felt bad for Ashley, that she was ever that sad. I think it was just a lot of miscommunication and confusion. I don’t really know what happened, but I wish them all the best. I texted all of them. Ashley texted me, ‘I’m sorry, your name got dragged in.’ And I was like, ‘It’s all right, girl. The world’s a silly, crazy place, and they just want something to talk about.’"

Tisdale French is mom to kids Jupiter, 4, and Emerson, 16 months, with husband Christopher French.